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Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2011  with  funding  from 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


http://www.archive.org/details/bibleonbaptismorOOsmit 


THE 


BIBLE  ON  BAPTISM; 


THE  SCRIPTURE  DIRECTORY  TO  BAPTISM. 


A  FAITUFUL  CITATION  OF  THE  PRINCIPAL  PASSAGES  OF  TUE 

OLD  AND  NEW  TESTAMENTS,  WHICH  RELATE  TO  THE 

MODE  OF  ADMINISTERING  THIS  ORDINANCE ; 


With  the  Sacred  Text 


IMPARTIALLY  EXAMINED,  AND  THE  PLAIN,  OBVIOUS  MEANING 

EXHIBITED  TO  THE  UNDERSTANDING  OF  EVERY  ONE 

WHO  IS  WILLING  TO  KNOW  THE  TRUTH. 


BY  A  LAYMAN. 


These  were  more  noble  than  those  in  Thessalonica,  in  that  they  re- 
ceived the  word  with  all  readiness  of  mind,  and  searched  the  Scriptures 
daily,  whether  these  things  were  so. — Acts  xvii.  11. 

Whatever  pretends  to  exceed  the  direction  of  the  Word,  may  safely  be 
rejected;  and  cannot  safely  be  admitted. — Dr.  Owen. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
PRESBYTERIAN  PUBLICATION  COMMITTEE, 

1334  CHESTNUT  STREET. 
NEW  YORK  :  A.  D.  F.  RANDOLPH,  683  BROADWAY. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1861,  by 

WM.  L.  HILDEBURN,  Treasurer, 

in  trust  for  the 

PRESBYTERIAN  PUBLICATION  COMMITTEE, 

in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for 

the  Eastern  District  of  Pennsylvania. 


.<&*«*& 'urvW* 


STEREOTYPED  BY  L.  JOHNSON  &  CO. 
PHILADELPHIA. 


NOTE. 


This  little  work  was  prepared,  and,  more 
than  thirty  years  since,  published,  by  a  lay 
member  of  one  of  the  Presbyterian  churches 
of  Philadelphia.  In  it  the  author,  who  has 
since  gone  to  his  rest,  seeks,  by  actual  cita- 
tion, to  gather  together  the  texts  of  Scripture 
having  a  direct  reference  to  Baptism,  and  to 
give  the  reader  an  opportunity  of  ascertaining 
what  the  Word  of  God  says  on  that  subject. 
"  In  a  few  notes,"  he  remarks,  "  I  have  humbly 
endeavored  to  point  out  what  appears  to  be 
taught  in  these  passages.  In  these  notes,  I 
have  written  under  the  impression  of  my  ac- 
countability to  the  righteous  Judge,  and  am 
not  conscious  that  I  have,  in  any  place,  given 
a  sense  different  from  what  was  intended  by 
the  Holy  Spirit.     The  reader  is  exhorted,  how- 

3 


4  NOTE. 

ever,  to  allow  his  mind  to  be  influenced  by  the 
word  of  God  alone." 

The  work  has  been  revised  and  abridged. 
The  notes,  though  not  from  the  pen  of  a  prac- 
tised writer,  are  forcible  and  intelligible,  and 
well  adapted  to  counteract  the  unfounded  as- 
sertions by  which  young  Christians  are  often 
assailed  and  troubled.  To  our  Baptist  friends 
we  commend  the  perusal  of  these  texts,  with 
or  without  the  notes. 


k 


THE 


BIBLE   ON  BAPTISM. 


I.  Introductory. 

The  gospel  is  intended  for  fallen  creatures. 
As  we  have  broken  God's  law,  and  have  be- 
come depraved,  we  need  two  things,  and  only 
two,  to  raise  us  up  to  love  God  and  fit  us  for 
his  service  and  enjoyment.  These  two  things 
are  the  forgiveness  of  sins  and  regeneration, 
as  effected  by  the  operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
These  two  great  truths  are  taught  constantly, 
not  only  by  the  Bible  in  words,  but  also 
symbolically  in  the  various  ordinances  which 
God  has  instituted,  at  different  times,  for  the 
observance  of  his  people. 

Every  ordinance  which  God  has  ever  insti- 
tuted in  his  church  is  full  of  meaning,  intended 
to  convey  some  valuable  instruction,  some  im- 
portant truth,  or  to  keep  in  mind  some  im- 
portant event. 


D  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

When  Adam  and  Eve  transgressed  his  law, 
by  eating  the  forbidden  fruit,  God  did  not  in- 
flict upon  them  the  penalty  of  eternal  death  at 
once,  (which  he  very  justly  might  have  done,) 
but  was  pleased  to  preach  repentance  and  faith 
to  them  in  the  garden,  and  to  promise  that 
"  the  seed  of  the  woman  should  bruise  the  ser- 
pent's head."  And,  further,  to  keep  this  in 
7nind,  he  instituted  sacrifices  of  clean  animals, 
to  point  their  faith  to  the  Lamb  of  God,  the 
great  sacrifice  for  sin,  and  thus  early  to  teach 
them,  that  "without  the  shedding  of  blood 
there  is  no  remission." 

I.  Circumcision  and  Sacrifices. 

Circumcision. — And  when  Abram  was  ninety  years  old 
and  nine,  the  Lord  appeared  to  Abram,  and  said  unto 
him,  I  am  the  Almighty  God;  walk  before  me,  and  be 
thou  perfect.  And  I  will  make  my  covenant  between  me 
and  thee,  and  will  multiply  thee  exceedingly.  .  .  .  And  I 
will  establish  my  covenant  between  me  and  thee,  and  thy 
seed  after  thee  in  their  generations,  for  an  everlasting 
covenant,  to  be  a  God  unto  thee  and  to  thy  seed  after 
thee.  .  .  .  This  is  my  covenant,  which  ye  shall  keep,  be- 
tween me  and  you  and  thy  seed  aft  er  thee :  Every  man-cbild 
among  you  shall  be  circumcised.  And  ye  shall  circum- 
cise the  flesh  of  your  foreskin ;  and  it  shall  be  a  token 
of  the  covenant  betwixt  me  and  you.  And  he  that  is 
eight  days  old  shall  be  circumcised  among  you,  every 
man-child  in  your  generations,  he  that  is  born  in  your 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  7 

house,  or  bought  with  money  of  any  stranger,  which  is 
not  of  thy  seed.  He  that  is  born  in  thy  house,  and  he  that 
is  bought  with  thy  money,  must  needs  be  circumcised : 
and  my  covenant  shall  be  in  your  flesh  for  an  everlasting 
covenant.  And  the  uncircumcised  man-child  whose  flesh 
of  his  foreskin  is  not  circumcised,  that  soul  shall  be  cut 
off  from  his  people  ;  he  hath  broken  my  covenant. — Gene- 
sis xvii.  1-14. 

Here  we  have  the  origin  of  the  rite  of  cir- 
cumcision. It  was  a  most  important  rite,  and 
appointed  by  God  himself  as  a  token  of  a 
covenant  made  with  Abraham,  the  father  of 
all  believers. 

It  was  also  a  bloody  rite :  it  not  only  signi- 
fied the  putting  off  the  sins  of  the  flesh,  but 
represented  an  internal  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
upon  the  heart ;  as  the  Bible  in  one  place  says, 
"a  circumcision  made  without  hands." 

It  was  also  a  profession  of  separation  from 
the  rest  of  the  world, — a  token  that  the  person 
circumcised  was  set  apart  for  the  Lord's  ser- 
vice, and  to  show  forth  his  glory. 

This  rite  was  continued  from  Abraham  to 
his  posterity,  down  through  all  their  genera- 
tions, until  Christ;  when  the  Jews  who  be- 
lieved in  Christ  discontinued  it  and  exchanged 
it  for  baptism;  but  the  Jews  who  rejected 
Christ  continue  it  to  this  day. 


8  THE    BIBLE    ON    BAPTISM. 

Levitical  Sacrifices. — When  God  appeared, 
to  deliver  the  children  of  Israel  from  Egyptian 
bondage,  he  instituted  the  Passover.  He  di- 
rected the  Jews  to  take  a  lamb  for  each  family, 
to  kill  it,  and  then 

Take  a  bunch  of  hyssop,  and  dip  it  in  the  blood  of  the 
lamb  that  is  in  the  basin,  and  strike  (or  sprinkle)  the  lintel 
and  the  two  side-posts  with  the  blood  that  is  in  the  basin; 
and  none  of  you  shall  go  out  at  the  door  of  his  house  until 
the  morning.  For  the  Lord  will  pass  through  to  smite 
the  Egyptians;  and  when  he  seeth  the  blood  upon  the 
lintel,  and  on  the  two  side-posts,  the  Lord  will  pass  over 
the  door,  and  will  not  suffer  the  destroyer  to  come  in  unto 
your  houses  to  smite  you. — Exodus  xii.  22,  23. 

Ceremony  of  Sacrificing.- — And  Moses  took  half  of  the 
blood,  and  put  it  in  basins;  and  half  of  the  blood  he 
sprinkled  on  the  altar:  .  .  .  and  Moses  took  the  blood,  and 
sprinkled  it  on  the  people,  and  said,  Behold  the  blood 
of  the  covenant,  which  the  Lord  hath  made  with  you  con- 
cerning all  these  words. — Exod.  xxiv.  6,  8. 

When  we  examine  the  various  sacrifices 
which  were  instituted  by  Moses  at  the  com- 
mand of  God  himself,  we  find  that  on  almost  all 
occasions  the  priest  took  part  of  the  blood  of 
the  victim  offered,  and  sprinkled  it  round 
about  the  altar,  and  upon  the  person  who 
offered ;  and  then  he  poured  the  remainder 
down  at  the  bottom  of  the  altar. 

In  all  the  various  kinds  of  sacrifices  and 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  9 

offerings,  we  never  hear  any  thing  of  the 
dipping  or  immersion  of  the  person  or  object 
represented  in  the  sacrifice  or  offering,  nor  of 
any  kind  of  ceremony  which  could  possibly 
signify,  or  lead  any  person  to  think  of  it ;  but 
it  is  all  sprinkling  and  pouring,  sprinkling 
and  pouring. 

Design  of  Sacrifices. — When  Aaron,  or  any 
priest  or  king,  was  to  be  consecrated  or  anointed 
to  his  office,  it  was  always  done  by  pouring  oil 
upon  his  head,  as  well  as  sprinkling  the 
blood  upon  him.  The  oil  was  to  signify  the 
descent  or  pouring  out  of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon 
him,  to  renew  and  sanctify  and  cleanse  his 
heart;  the  blood  to  show  forth  the  atoning 
efficacy  of  the  blood  of  Christ. 

By  consulting  the  Scriptures  it  will  most 
abundantly  appear,  that  these  two  great  truths 
are  to  be  learned  by  them;  in  every  part  of 
the  Bible  the  promised  blessing  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  is  always  compared  to  pouring  out 
water  or  rain,  and  never,  in  any  one  place,  to 
any  thing  like  dipping.  And  invariably  the 
blessing  is  said  to  be  applied  to  the  person, 
and  not  the  person  applied  to  the  blessing. 

The  Scripture   nowhere  speaks  of  dipping 


10  THE   BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM. 

people   into   the   Holy  Ghost,  or  of  dipping 
them  into  the  "blood  of  Christ. 

On  the  contrary,  all  the  Jewish  sacrifices, 
and  all  the  anointings  of  the  stones,  and  kings, 
and  priests,  and  prophets,  were  performed  by 
sprinkling  the  blood  and  pouring  out  the  oil. 
I  will  cite  a  few  passages. 

And  Aaron  and  his  sons  thou  shalt  bring  unto  the  door 
of  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation,  and  shalt  wash  them 
•with  water.  Then  shalt  thou  take  the  anointing  oil,  and 
porit  it  upon  his  head,  and  anoint  him.  Thou  shalt  also 
take  one  ram ;  and  Aaron  and  his  sons  shall  put  their 
hands  upon  the  head  of  the  ram.  And  thou  shalt  slay 
the  ram,  and  thou  shalt  take  his  blood,  and  sprinkle  it 
round  about  upon  the  altar.  And  thou  shalt  take  the  other 
ram ;  and  Aaron  and  his  sons  shall  put  their  hands  upon 
the  head  of  the  ram.  Then  shalt  thou  kill  the  ram,  and 
take  of  his  blood,  and  put  it  upon  the  tip  of  the  right  ear 
of  Aaron,  and  upon  the  tip  of  the  right  ear  of  his  sons, 
and  upon  the  thumb  of  their  right  hand,  and  upon  the 
great  toe  of  their  right  foot,  and  sprinkle  the  blood  upon 
the  altar  round  about.  And  thou  shalt  take  of  the  blood 
that  is  upon  the  altar,  and  of  the  anointing  oil,  and 
sprinkle  it  upon  Aaron,  and  upon  his  garments,  and  upon 
his  sons,  and  upon  the  garments  of  his  sons  with  him; 
and  he  shall  be  hallowed,  and  his  garments,  and  his  sons, 
and  his  sons'  garments  with  him.  Exodus  xxix.  4,  7,  15, 
16,  19,  20,  21.     See  also  Exodus  xl.  9,  15. 

And  the  Lord  called  unto  Moses,  and  spake  unto  him 
out  of  the  tabernacle  of  the  congregation,  saying,  Speak 
unto  the  children  of  Israel,  and  say  unto  them,  If  any 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  11 

man  of  you  bring  an  offering  unto  the  Lord,  ye  shall  bring 
your  offering  of  the  cattle,  even  of  the  herd,  and  of  the 
flock.  If  his  offering  be  a  burnt  sacrifice  of  the  herd,  let 
him  offer  a  male  without  blemish.  And  he  shall  kill  the 
bullock  before  the  Lord  ;  and  the  priests,  Aaron's  sons, 
shall  bring  the  blood,  and  sprinkle  the  blood  round  about 
upon  the  altar  that  is  by  the  door  of  the  tabernacle  of  the 
congregation.  And  if  his  offering  be  of  the  flocks,  namely, 
of  the  sheep,  or  of  the  goats,  for  a  burnt  sacrifice ;  he 
shall  bring  it  a  male  without  blemish.  And  he  shall  kill 
it  on  the  side  of  the  altar  northward  before  the  Lord: 
and  the  priests,  Aaron's  sons,  shall  sprinkle  his  blood 
round  about  upon  the  altar. — Leviticus  i.  1-11. 

See  also  Lev.  iii.  2,  8,  13;  iv.  6,  17,  25,  30,  34;  v.  9; 
vii.  2,  14;  viii.  10,  12,  15,  19,  24,  30  ;  ix.  18;  xiv.  7;  xvi. 
14,  15,  19.  Also  Numbers  xix.  14,  21 ;  Deut.  xii.  16,  24; 
xv.  23. 

From  all  which  passages,  and  many  more,  it 
is  plain  that  whenever  God  himself  speaks  of 
purging,  purifying,  cleansing,  or  sanctifying 
any  thing,  he  always  speaks  of  sprinkling  or 
pouring  out  water,  or  oil,  or  blood,  or  the 
Holy  Spirit,  upon  them  ;  and  never  by  dipping 
them  into  water,  oil,  or  blood,  or  dipping  them 
into  the  Holy  Ghost. 

II.  Predictions  Illustrating  the  Subject. 

He  shall  come  down  like  rain  upon  the  mown  grass; 
as  showers  that  water  the  earth. — Psalm  lxxii. 
The  palaces  shall  be  forsaken,  the  multitude  of  the  city 


12  THE    BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

shall  be  left ;  the  forts  and  towers  shall  be  for  dens  for- 
ever, a  joy  of  wild  asses,  a  pasture  of  flocks,  until  the 
Spirit  be  poured  upon  us  from  on  high,  and  the  wilder- 
ness be  a  fruitful  field,  and  the  fruitful  field  be  counted 
for  a  forest. — Isaiah  xxxii.  14,  15. 

For  I  will  pour  water  upon  him  that  is  thirsty,  and 
floods  upon  the  dry  ground:  I  will  pour  my  Spirit  upon 
thy  seed,  and  my  blessing  upon  thine  offspring. — Isaiah 
xliv.  3. 

And  in  the  fifty-second  chapter  of  Isaiah 
(where  the  Ethiopian  eunuch  was  reading 
when  Philip  found  him  and  baptized  him)  it 
is  distinctly  declared  and  predicted  of  Christ 
that,  when  he  came  in  the  flesh,  he  should 

SPRINKLE  MANY  NATIONS. 

And  God  declared  by  the  prophet  Ezekiel, 
that  he  would  do  the  same  thing  for  his 
people  upon  their  return  from  among  the 
heathen,  when  he  says  : — 

Then  will  I  sprinkle  clean  water  upon  you,  and  ye  shall 
be  clean :  from  all  your  filthiness,  and  from  all  your  idols, 
will  I  cleanse  you. — Ezekiel  xxxvi.  25.  And  by  the  same 
prophet  God  says,  Neither  will  I  hide  my  face  any  more 
from  them,  for  I  have  poured  out  my  Spirit  upon  the 
house  of  Israel,  saith  the  Lord  God. — Ezekiel  xxxix.  29. 
Again,  by  the  prophet  Joel,  God  says :  And  it  shall  come 
to  pass  afterward,  that  I  will  pour  out  my  Spirit  upon 
all  flesh :  and  your  sons  and  your  daughters  shall  pro- 
phesy, your  old  men  shall  dream  dreams,  your  young 
men  shall  see  visions.     And  also  upon  the  servants  and 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  13 

upon  the  handmaids  in  those  days  will  I  pour  out  my 
Spirit. — Joel  ii.  28,  29.  And  by  Zechariah,  God  says: 
I  will  pour  upon  the  house  of  David,  and  upon  the  in- 
habitants of  Jerusalem,  the  spirit  of  grace  and  of  suppli- 
cations :  and  they  shall  look  upon  me  whom  they  have 
pierced,  and  they  shall  mourn. — Zechariah  xii.  10. 

And  so  Malachi  iii.  10. 

Pray,  when  are  these  predictions  to  be  ful- 
filled, if  not  in  gospel  days  ? 

Now,  here  are  not  only  allusions  of  the 
strongest'  kind,  but  express  and  positive  pre- 
dictions of  God  himself,  to  show  the  exact 
mode  in  which  baptism  should  be  adminis- 
tered; for  the  atoning,  pardoning  efficacy  of 
the  blood  of  Christ,  and  the  baptism  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  is  everywhere  compared  to  the 
pouring  out  or  sprinkling  clean  water  upon 
the  persons. 

And  as  the  Jews  used  sacrifices  until  the 
time  of  Christ,  in  which  the  sprinkling  and 
pouring  out  of  the  blood  still  continued,  how 
could  they  ever  have  thought  it  most  proper 
to  dip  a  person  into  water,  to  supply  the  place 
of  sprinkling  and  pouring  the  blood  ? 

Would  it  not  have  been  naturally  expected 
by  everybody  (who  understood  any  thing 
about  the  two  great  truths  taught  in  their 
sacrifices  and  anointings)  that  when  sacrifices 

2 


14  THE   BIBLE  ON   BAPTISM. 

were  ended,  and  water  was  substituted  for  the 
blood  and  the  oil,  some  mode  would  be  em- 
ployed still  to  signify  the  same  things  by  the 
application  of  water  ? 

Who  would  ever  have  supposed  that  dipping 
the  subject  into  water  could  be  understood  by 
the  Jews,  when  their  prophets  had  always 
represented  the  blessings  of  the  gospel  by 
sprinkling  and  pouring  ?  And  they  had  never 
heard  or  learned,  from  the  law' or  the  pro- 
phets, any  thing  about  dipping  into  the  blood 
of  Christ,  or  dipping  into  the  Holy  Ghost  ? 

If  dipping  had  been  attempted,  many  objec- 
tions would  have  arisen  and  much  opposition 
been  made ;  but  we  hear  nothing  of  all  this. 
These  reasons  alone  would  render  it  highly 
probable  that  neither  John  the  Baptist  nor 
the  apostles  ever  practised  dipping  under 
water  for  baptism. 

John's  Baptizing  the  Jews, 

(Before  the  beginning  of  our  Lord's  ministry.) 

The  first  place  of  Scripture  where  the  ordi- 
nance of  baptism  is  found,  describes  the  mis- 
sion, preaching,  and  baptizing  of  John,  the 
harbinger  of  Christ.    As  all  the  four  evangel- 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  15 

ists  have  given  us  some  account  of  John  and 
his  practice,  I  shall  take  the  fullest  informa- 
tion from  them  all,  and  present  it  to  the  reader 
in  its  proper  connection.  The  following  col- 
lection and  disposition  of  passages  will  afford 
us,  I  conceive,  a  complete  account  in  the  pure 
words  of  Scripture. 

The  divine  mission  of  John,  and  the  design  of  it. 

The  beginning  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of 
God.— Mark  i.  1. 

There  was  a  man  sent  from  God,  whose  name  was  John. 
— John  i.  6. 

As  it  is  written  in  the  prophets,  Behold,  I  send  my 
messenger  before  thy  face,  which  shall  prepare  thy  way 
before  thee. — Mark  i.  2. 

For  this  is  he  that  was  spoken  of  by  the  prophet  Esaias, 
saying,  The  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness,  Prepare 
ye  the  way  of  the  Lord,  make  his  paths  straight. — Matt, 
iii.  3. 

And  many  of  the  children  of  Israel  shall  he  turn  to  the 
Lord  their  God ;  and  he  shall  go  before  him  :  ...  to  make 
ready  a  people  prepared  for  the  Lord. — Luke  i.  16,  17. 

Now  .  .  .  the  word  of  God  came  unto  John  the  son  of 
Zacharias  in  the  wilderness. — Luke  iii.  1,  2. 

John' s  preaching,  as  to  the  grand  theme  of  it. 

In  those  days  came  John  the  Baptist,  preaching  in  the 
wilderness  of  Judea,  and  saying,  Repent  ye:  for  the  king- 
dom of  heaven  is  at  hand. — Matt.  iii.  1,  2. 

And  he  came  into  all  the  country  about  Jordan,  preach- 
ing the  baptism  of  repentance  for  the  remission  of  sins. 
— Luke  iii.  3. 


16  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

John  preached  the  baptism  of  repentance  to  all  the 
people  of  Israel,  saying  unto  the  people,  that  they  should 
believe  on  him  which  should  come  after  him,  that  is,  on 
Christ  Jesus. — Acts  xiii.  24 ;  xix.  4. 

John's  baptizing.  He  informed  his  hearers  that  God  had'sent 
him  not  to  preach  only,  but  to  baptize  tvith  water. — John  i. 
33. 

And  there  went  out  unto  him  all  the  land  of  Judea,  and 
they  of  Jerusalem,  and  were  all  baptized  of  him  in  the 
river  of  Jordan,  confessing  their  sins. — Mark  i.  5. 

But  when  he  saw  many  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees 
come  to  his  baptism,  he  said  unto  them,  0  generation  of 
vipers!  who  hath  warned  you  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to 
come?  8  Bring  forth,  therefore,  fruits  meet  for  repent- 
ance :  9  And  think  not  to  say  within  yourselves,  We  have 
Abraham  to  our  father:  for  I  say  unto  you,  that  God  is 
able  of  these  stones  to  raise  up  children  unto  Abraham. 
10  And  now  also  the  axe  is  laid  unto  the  root  of  the  trees ; 
therefore  every  tree  which  bringeth  not  forth  good  fruit 
is  hewn  down,  and  cast  into  the  fire. — Matt.  iii.  7-11. 

Sigyiification  of  John's  Baptism. 

I  indeed  baptize  you  with  water  unto  repentance;  but 
he  that  cometh  after  me  is  mightier  than  I,  whose  shoes 
I  am  not  worthy  to  bear ;  he  shall  baptize  you  with  the 
Holy  Ghost,  and  with  fire:  12  Whose  fan  is  in  his  hand, 
and  he  will  thoroughly  purge  his  floor,  and  gather  his 
wheat  into  the  garner;  but  he  will  burn  up  the  chaff 
with  unquenchable  fire. — Matt.  iii.  11,  12. 

For  John  truly  baptized  with  water,  but  ye  shall  be 
baptized  with  the  Holy  Ghost  not  many  days  hence. — 
Acts  i.  5. 


THE   BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM.  17 

Mode  of  Johns  Baptism. 

One  thing  can  be  made  very  plain  :  that  it 
never  could  have  been  by  immersion. 

1.  Such  a  mode  would  have  been  without 
significance.  "When  John  says,  "  I  indeed  bap- 
tize with  water  unto  repentance ;  but  he  that 
cometh  after  me  is  mightier  than  I,  whose 
shoes  I  am  not  worthy  to  bear;  he  shall  bap- 
tize you  with  the  Holy  Ghost  and  with  fire ;" 
he  made  allusions  which  were  both  intelligible 
and  striking  to  his  hearers.  But  if  he  had 
been  immersing  them,  it  would  read  thus  :  "  I 
indeed  baptize  you  by  dipping  you  into  the 
water;  but  he  that  cometh  after  me  shall  bap- 
tize you  by  pouring  out  the  Holy  Ghost  upon 
you."  The  mode  is  so  very  different,  that  all 
the  force  of  the  allusion  is  lost.  For  men  are 
never  dipped  into  the  Holy  Ghost,  or  applied 
to  the  Holy  Ghost,  but  the  Holy  Ghost  is 
always  sprinkled,  shed,  or  poured  out.  And, 
therefore,  for  John  to  have  immersed  the 
people  would  not  have  represented  the  bless- 
ing intended  to  be  signified  at  all.  It  would 
have  exhibited  nothing  like  it,  and  would  have 
been  an  emblem  without  any  expression — a 
symbol  of  no  significancy.  And  there  could 
not  have  been  any  allusion  to  Christ's  death 


18  THE   BIBLE  ON   BAPTISM. 

then,  for  he  was  not  dead,  and  the  people  did 
not  expect  him  to  die. 

2.  It  would  have  been  a  manifest  departure 
from  the  symbols  then  in  use,  and  from  those 
pointed  out  in  the  language  of  prophecy;  for 
these  are  all  sprinkling  and  pouring.  How 
would  John's  language  have  sounded  to  the 
people,  and  how  would  his  practice  have  struck 
their  minds?  Would  they  not  have  objected, 
and  asked  to  know  the  reasons  of  this  glaring 
departure  from  the  old  established  mode  of 
sprinkling  and  pouring  ?  and  would  they  not 
have  pointed  out  the  incongruity  of  a  mode 
entirely  destitute  of  meaning?  For  it  is  not 
pretended  that  Christ  had  been  buried  at  this 
time. 

But  if  John  in  fact  baptized  by  sprinkling 
and  pouring  the  water,  (as  we  suppose  he 
did,)  then  the  phraseology  which  John  used 
would  be  perfectly  straight,  and  the  whole 
subject  easily  understood  by  them. 

It  was  as  if  he  had  said,  UI  indeed  baptize 
you  by  sprinkling  and  pouring  the  water  upon 
you;  but  there  cometh  one  after  me  who  is 
mightier  than  I:  he  shall  baptize  you  by 
shedding  or   pouring  the  Holy  Spirit   upon 

you." 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  19 

3.  As  great  multitudes  were  baptized  by- 
John,  there  is  a  most  serious  improbability  in 
the  way  of  his  immersing  them,  on  the  score 
of  physical  possibility.  Since  it  is  said  that 
"  Jerusalem,  and  all  Judea,  and  all  the  region 
round  about  Jordan,  went  out  and  were  bap- 
tized of  him,"  the  number  of  the  baptized 
must,  on  any  explanation,  have  been  very 
great. 

The  writer,  to  satisfy  himself  on  this  point, 
asked  an  eminent  physician  (entirely  disin- 
terested on  this  question)  with  regard  to  the 
ability  of  a  man  to  endure  the  fatigue  of 
immersion.  He  took  a  little  time  to  con- 
sider, and  returned  for  answer:  1.  That  he 
had  witnessed  the  ceremony  several'  times. 
And,  2..  That  he  did  not  believe  the  most 
muscular  man  of  his  acquaintance  could  dip 
one  hundred  persons  in  a  day,  and  stand  the 
fatigue  one  month.  And  a  moment's  con- 
sideration must  convince  every  one  that  he 
was  correct.  For  when  a  person  is  dipped,  he 
walks  down  into  the  water,  the  operator  takes 
hold  of  him  before,  by  clasping  one  hand  in  a 
band  tied  round  him,  and  puts  the  other  hand 
under  his  back;  then  throws  him  backward 
into  the  water,   and  dips  him  all  under  the 


20  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

water,  and  then  lifts  him  up  again  by  main 
strength,  and  sets  him  upon  his  feet. 

A  gentleman  of  veracity  told  the  writer, 
that  he  was  once  present  when  forty-seven 
were  dipped  in  one  day,  in  the  usual  way. 
The  first  operator  began  and  went  through 
the  ceremony  until  he  had  dipped  twenty-five 
persons,  when  he  was  so  fatigued  that  he  was 
compelled  to  give  it  up  to  the  other,  who  with 
great  apparent  difficulty  dipped  the  other 
twenty-two.  Both  appeared  completely  ex- 
hausted, and  went  off  the  ground  into  a  house 
hard  by,  to  change  their  clothes  and  refresh 
themselves. 

Baptizing  in  Jordan. 

But  why,  it  is  asked,  unless  immersion  was 
practised,  go  to  Jordan,  or  to  ".  Enon,  near  to 
Salim,  because  there  was  much  water  there"  ? 
The  reason  is  a  very  simple  one.  Water  in 
quantity  is  absolutely  necessary  when  a  large 
multitude  come  from  a  distance  and  encamp ; 
as  must  have  been  the  case  with  those  who 
went  into  the  wilderness  to  John. 

But,  if  the  only  object  in  view  was  to  dip 
them  one  by  one,  a  large  river,  like  the  Jor- 
dan, would  not  be  necessary.     A  very  small 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  21 

stream,  a  brook,  ten  feet  wide  and  three  feet 
deep,  would  answer  a  great  deal  better.  To 
say  that  a  great  river  like  Jordan  was  neces- 
sary on  that  account,  is  a  very  foolish  reason, 
and  has  absurdity  on  the  very  face  of  it. 

In  the  great  camp-meetings  that  take  place 
nowadays,  they  always  fix  upon  some  place 
where  water  is  easily  obtained  for  the  horses, 
&c.  If  our  Methodist  brethren  should  adver- 
tise that  on  a  certain  week  they  were  to  have 
a  camp-meeting  in  a  certain  place,  where  they 
expected  many  thousands  of  people,  and  that 
they  had  located  it  near  some  large  stream  of 
water,  would  anybody  think  from  that  circum- 
stance that  they  meant  to  dip  people  ?  "Would 
not  the  reason  be  obvious  to  every  person  why 
such  a  place  was  chosen  ? 

On  the  supposition  that  John  had  immersed 
the  immense  multitudes  of  which  mention  is 
made,  what  possible  analogy  could  there  be 
between  such  a  mode  and  the  blessings  in- 
tended to  be  represented  by  it  ?  If  the  mode 
was  an  exhibition  of  the  work  of  the  Spirit, 
then  dipping  was  not  such  an  exhibition,  for^ 
the  Spirit's  work  is  uniformly  represented  by 
sprinkling  and  pouring.  And,  besides,  the 
Spirit  is  said  to  be  applied  to  the  subject;  but, 


22  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

in  dipping,  the  subject  is  applied  to  the  water, 
and  not  the  water  to  the  subject;  and  conse- 
quently, if  John  did  dip  or  immerse  people,  he 
must  have  acted  in  a  most  inconsistent  and 
absurd  manner.  At  this  time,  no  one  thought 
about  the  burial  of  Christ,  for  he  was  not  dead. 

III.  The  Baptism  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Our  Lord's  baptism  we  next  find  imme- 
diately following  the  above  account  of  John. 
The  infinite  dignity  of  the  person  baptized 
attaches  to  it  infinite  interest  and  weight. 
The  following  is  the  fullest  account  given  us. 

Matt.  iii.  13.  Then  cometh  Jesus  from  Galilee  to  Jor- 
dan, unto  John,  to  be  baptized  of  him.  14  But  John  for- 
bade him,  saying,  I  have  need  to  be  baptized  of  thee,  and 
comest  thou  to  me  ?  15  And  Jesus  answering,  said  unto 
him,  Suffer  it  to  be  so  now  :  for  thus  it  becometh  us  to  ful- 
fil all  righteousness.  Then  he  suffered  him.  Mark  i.  9. 
And — JESUS — was  baptized  of  John  in  Jordan. 
Matt.  iii.  16.  And  Jesus,  when  he  was  baptized,  went  up 
straightway  out  of  the  water.  Mark  i.  10.  And — coming 
up  out  of  the  water,  Luke  iii.  21,  and  praying,  the  heaven 
was  opened.  22  And  the  Holy  Ghost  descended  in  a 
bodily  shape  like  a  dove  upon  him,  and  a  voice  came 
from  heaven,  which  said,  Thou  art  my  beloved  Son  ;  in 
thee  I  am  well  pleased.  23  And  Jesus  himself  began  to 
be  about  thirty  years  of  age. 

John  i.  32.  And  John  bare  record,  saying,  I  saw  the 
Spirit  descending  from  heaven  like  a  dove,  and  it  abode 


THE    BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM.  23 

upon  him.  33  And  I  knew  him  not;  but  he  that  sent 
me  to  baptize  with  water,  the  same  said  unto  me,  Upon 
whom  thou  shalt  see  the  Spirit  descending  and  remaining 
on  him,  the  same  is  he  which  baptizeth  with  the  Holy 
Ghost.  34  And  I  saw,  and  bare  record  that  this  is  the 
Son  of  God. 

What,  my  pious  reader,  can  we  say  of  the 
subject  of  baptism  in  this  case?  What  an 
honor  is  here  attached  to  this  ordinance,  and 
consequently  to  all  that  piously  follow  the  ex- 
ample of  the  Eedeemer  in  it ! 

Here  we  have  the  whole  account  of  the  bap- 
tism of  Christ :  and  these  passages  are  often 
quoted  to  prove  that  Christ  was  dipped  or  im- 
mersed in  the  water  of  the  Jordan,  merely 
because  it  was  said,  "He  went  up  straightway 
out  of  the  water,"  and  "coming  up  out  of  the 
water;"  as  if  it  was  impossible  for  a  person  to 
come  up  out  of  the  water  unless  he  had  been 
all  over  under  water. 

But  here  nothing  took  place,  no  circum- 
stance whatever  is  related,  but  what  was 
equally  proper  and  necessary  to  describe  his 
baptism,  if  it  was  done  (as  we  suppose)  by  his 
stepping  down  a  little  way  into  the  water, 
and  John  pouring  the  water  upon  his  head. 

And  although  we  believe  that  in  common 
baptisms  John  made   use  of  sprinkling,  yet 


24  THE    BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

here  we  think  it  probable  that  he  poured  the 
water  upon  his  head. 

1.  Because  prophets,  priests,  and  kings  were 
always  consecrated  to  their  several  offices  by 
solemnly  pouring  the  oil  upon  their  heads. 
The  priests,  in  particular,  were  consecrated 
and  anointed  with  oil  when  they  were  thirty 
years  of  age;  and  here  it  is  expressly  men- 
tioned of  Christ,  that  "  he  began  to  be  about 
thirty  years  of  age:'1  as  if  the  Holy  Ghost  in- 
tended to  inform  us  here  of  the  reason  why 
Christ  was  baptized  at  this  time ;  and  that  the 
water  was  poured  out  upon  his  head,  to  signify 
his  being  anointed  a  priest. 

2.  Because  the  name  "Christ,"  and  "Mes- 
siah," by  which  he  was  called,  signifies  "an- 
ointed," the  anointed  one. 

3.  Because  at  this  same  time  the  Spirit  was 
actually  poured  out  upon  him;  but  he  was 
not  dipped  into  the  Spirit. 

4.  Because  the  prophet  Isaiah  prophesied 
that  Christ  should  be  "anointed  to  preach 
good  tidings  to  the  meek,  to  bind  up  the  bro- 
ken-hearted," &c. — Isaiah  lxi.  1.  Which  pro- 
phecy Christ  particularly  applied  to  himself. — 
Luke  iv.  21. 

Now,  we  know  that,  being  of  the  tribe  of 


THE    BIBLE    ON    BAPTISM.  25 

Judah,  he  could  never  have  been  consecrated 
and  anointed  as  priest  by  any  of  the  priests  at 
Jerusalem.  And  if  this  was  not  the  time  when 
he  was  anointed  a  prophet,  priest,  and  king, 
we  cannot  find  any  other  place  where  it  was 
ever  done.  And  if  John,  to  "  fulfil  all  right- 
eousness," anointed  Christ  at  this  time  to  these 
sacred  offices,  it  does  not  seem  very  probable 
that  he  did  it  by  dipping  him,  which  would 
signify  nothing  at  all;  but  it  was  done  by 
pouring  the  water  upon  his  head,  to  represent 
the  pouring  of  the  oil  by  the  priests,  and  also 
the  descent  of  the  Holy  Spirit;  and  at  the 
same  time  the  Holy  Spirit  did  actually  descend 
in  the  form  of  a  dove,  and  sat  upon  him. 

Now,  we  cannot  suppose  that  he  was  dipped 
to  represent  his  burial,  for  he  was  not  yet 
dead ;  and  if  his  burial  was  not  represented  by 
it,  then  it  must  have  been  either  to  represent 
his  induction  to  the  priest's  office,  or  the  de- 
scent of  the  Holy  Spirit;  or  there  can  be  no 
meaning  in  it. 

IV.  Christ  Baptizing, 

[By  his  disciples,  in  Galilee  and  Judea.) 

This  is  the  only  mention  of  baptizing  by  our 
Lord  or  his  disciples  during  his  personal  pre- 


26  THE    BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

sence  with  them,  and  consequently  it  claims 
our  very  serious  attention. 

After  these  things  came  Jesus  and  his  disciples  into 
the  land  of  Judea:  and  there  he  tarried  -with  them,  and 
baptized.  26  And  they  came  unto  John,  and  said  unto 
him,  Rabbi,  he  that  was  with  thee  beyond  Jordan,  to 
whom  thou  barest  witness,  behold,  the  same  baptizeth, 
and  all  men  come  to  him.  27  John  answered  and  said,  A 
man  can  receive  nothing,  except  it  be  given  him  from 
heaven.  30  He  must  increase,  but  I  must  decrease. — John 
iii.  22-30. 

When,  therefore,  the  Lord  knew  how  the  Pharisees 
had  heard  that  Jesus  made  and  baptized  more  disciples 
than  John,  2  (Though  Jesus  himself  baptized  not,  but 
his  disciples,)  3  He  left  Judea,  and  departed  again  into 
Galilee. — John  iv.  1-3. 

The  import  of  this  passage  is  simply  this : 
Jesus  and  his  disciples  had  been  preaching 
a.nd  baptizing  in  Galilee ;  and  great  numbers 
resorted  to  him;  so  that  it  was  reported  to 
the  Pharisees  that  he  had  made  and  baptized 
more  disciples  than  John  had  in  Judea,  Jeru- 
salem, &c.  He  came  out  of  Galilee  a  short 
time  into  Judea,  and  baptized  a  few  persons, 
but  probably  found  a  very  few  who  had  not 
been  baptized  by  John ;  and  there  he  heard 
the  reports  of  the  Pharisees,  upon  which  he 
departed  again  into  Galilee. 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  27 

There  is  nothing  here  to  determine  the  mode 
in  which  this  ordinance  was  performed,  nor 
what  description  of  persons  were  baptized. 
They  were  principally  Galileans,  and  undoubt- 
edly the  same  description  of  persons  as  before 
mentioned.  There  is,  however,  no  mention  of 
any  large  river ;  nor  was  there  probably  any 
need  of  it.  There  were  nowhere  such  large 
collections  of  people,  with  their  camels,  horses, 
and  asses,  as  to  render  an  encampment  near 
convenient  watering-places  necessary,  as  was 
the  case  when  John  baptized.  Our  Saviour 
probably  went  with  his  disciples  from  village 
to  village,  and  baptized,  sometimes  in  their 
houses,  and  sometimes  in  the  open  air,  and 
under  the  shade  of  the  trees ;  but  we  have  no 
account  in  all  these  passages  that  any  persons 
were  ever  dipped  in  water,  or  that  Christ  or 
his  disciples  ever  went  near  any  river.  And 
it  is  very  remarkable,  if  immersion  is  the 
only  mode  of  baptism,  and  is  so  important, 
that  there  is  no  account  in  any  place  that 
Christ  or  his  disciples  ever  dipped  any  per- 
sons. 


28  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

V.  John's  Last  Baptizing  in  Enon. 

The  next  passage  we  find  on  this  subject  is 
contained  in  a  very  few  words.  It  is,  how- 
ever, a  passage  which  has  been  thought  of 
considerable  weight  as  to  our  inquiry. 

John  iii.  23.  And  John  also  was  baptizing  in  Enon 
near  to  Salim,  because  there  was  much  water  there ;  and 
they,  came  and  were  baptized. 

This  passage  has  been  much  relied  upon  by 
our  brethren  the  Baptists,  to  prove  dipping  or 
immersion.  For  why,  say  they,  should  John 
choose  such  a  place  "  because  there  was  much 
ivater  there,11  if  it  was  not  for  the.  purpose  of 
dipping  them  ? 

But  a  moment's  examination  and  reflection 
will  show  that  this  is  an  illusion;  and  that  if 
the  only  thing  wanted  was  a  convenient  place 
to  dip  them,  much  water,  or  many  waters.,  (as 
the  original  is,)  would  not  be  necessaey: 
for  (as  we  said  before)  a  very  small  stream  or 
brook  of  clear  water,  not  more  than  eight  or 
ten  feet  wide,  and  three  or  four  feet  deep, 
would  answer  just  as  well.  But  a  collection 
or  encampment  of  many  thousands  of  people, 
with  their  camels,  and  horses,  and  asses,  from 
all  parts  of  the  country,  would  indeed  require 


THE   BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM.  29 

a  place  near  some  convenient  streams  of  water, 
where  they  could  lead  them  to  water  several 
times  a  day,  that-  they  might  not  suffer  and 
die  of  thirst.  This  was  undoubtedly  the  true 
reason,  and  was  a  good  reason ;  and  not  for 
the  purpose  of  dipping  them. 

John's  baptism  could  not  have  been  de- 
signed to  represent  Christ's  burial,  for  he  was 
not  yet  dead.  It  must  have  been  to  represent 
the  pouring  out  the  Spirit  of  God,  which  could 
only  have  been  by  sprinkling  or  pouringt  and 
could  not  have  been  represented  by  dipping. 

VI.  General  Account  of  John's  Success. 

Luke  vii.  29.  And  all  the  people  that  heard  him,  and 
the  publicans,  justified  God,  being  baptized  with  the  bap- 
tism of  John.  30  But  the  Pharisees  and  lawyers  rejected 
the  counsel  of  God  against  themselves,  being  not  baptized 
of  him.     35  But  wisdom  is  justified  of  all  her  children. 

There  is  nothing  here  expressive  of  the 
mode  of  baptism. 

VII.  Christ  Eepresents  his  Sufferings 

UNDER   THE   FlGURE   OF   A   BAPTISM. 

(See  Mark  x.  35  and  40,  and) 

Matt.  xx.  22.  But  Jesus  answered  and  said,  Ye  know 
not  what  ye  ask.     Are  ye  able  to  drink  of  the  cup  that  I 


30  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

shall  drink  of,  and  to  be  baptized  with  the  baptism  that 
I  am  baptized  with?  They  say  unto  him,  We  are  able. 
23  And  he  saith  unto  them,  Ye  shall  drink  indeed  of  my 
cup,  and  be  baptized  with  the  baptism  that  I  am  baptized 
with:  but  to  sit  on  my  right  hand,  and  on  my  left,  is  not 
mine  to  give,  but  it  shall  be  given  to  them  for  whom  it  is 
prepared  of  my  Father. 

Luke  xii.  50.  But  I  have  a  baptism  to  be  baptized  with  ; 
and  how  am  I  straitened  till  it  be  accomplished ! 

Here  is  another  confirmation  of  our  opinion 
as  to  the  mode  of  Christian  baptism.  Christ 
here  calls  his  sufferings  and  death  "  a  bap- 
tism;" and  with  the  most  beautiful  propriety. 

The  prophet  Isaiah,  liii.  12/  represented 
Christ's  sufferings  by  the  words  "h.eh&th.  poured 
out  his  soul  unto  death."  God  also  poured  out 
his  indignation  and  wrath  upon  him.  When 
it  pleased  the  Lord  to  bruise  him,  he  put  him 
to  grief,  and  made  his  soul  an  offering  for  sin. 

And  justice  poured  upon  his  head 
Its  weighty  vengeance,  in  our  stead. 

This  mode  of  speaking  is  very  frequent  in 
Scripture,  to  express  the  sufferings  of  those 
who  fall  under  the  wrath  of  God  due  for  sin. 
See  Jeremiah  vii.  20 :  "  Therefore  thus  saith 
the  Lord  God,  Behold,  mine  anger  and  rny 
fury  shall  be  poured  out  upon  this  place,"  &c. 
Also,  Ezekiel  vii.  8:  "Now  will  I  shortly  pour 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  31 

out  my  fury  upon  thee."  See  also  Ezekiel  xiv. 
19,  xx.  8,  13,  21 ;  also,  xxx.  15.  Jer.  x.  25. 
Psalm  lxix.  24;  lxxix.  6.  Nahum  i.  6.  Job 
xx.  23. 

In  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane  and  upon  the 
cross  were  the  vials  of  divine  justice  poured 
out  upon  him.  There  too  did  water  and  blood 
pour  forth  from  his  pierced  side,  emblems  of 
atonement  and  sanctification,  prefiguring  the 
teachings  of  the  two  sacraments,  the  Lord's 
supper  and  baptism. 

My  Saviour's  pierced  side 

Pour'd  out  a  double  flood  : 
By  water  we  are  purified, 

And  pardon'd  by  the  blood." 

Christ  told  the  sons  of  Zebedee  that  they 
should  be  baptized  with  the  baptism  he  was  bap- 
tized with ;  that  is,  be  partakers  of  his  suffer- 
ings :  and  so  they  were,  some  time  afterwards. 

VIII.  Cheistian  Baptism. 

Baptism,  it  is  evident,  was  instituted  long 
before  the  following  commission  was  delivered 
to  the  apostles.  It  was  instituted  by  God,  and 
enjoined  on  John,  the  forerunner  of  Christ,  as 
a  part  of  the  work  to  which  he  was  especially 
called.     Hence,  when  speaking  of  the  Father, 


32  THE   BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM. 

he  describes  him  by  this  very  circumstance : 
"He  that  sent  me  to  baptize  with  water." 
John  i.  33.  Our  Saviour  also  had  directed  his 
disciples  to  baptize  such  persons  as  should  re- 
ceive his  word,  when  he  commenced  his  public 
ministry;  (see  §  III.  p.  22 :)  but  he  delayed  the 
full  and  formal  institution  of  Christian  bap- 
tism till  he  was  risen  from  the  dead,  when 
he  united  it  with  his  last  most  solemn  charge, 
given  by  Matthew  and  Mark,  in  the  following 
verses : — 

Matt,  xxviii.  16.  Then  the  eleven  disciples  went  away 
into  Galilee,  into  a  mountain  where  Jesus  had  appointed 
them.  18  And  Jesus  came  and  spake  unto  them,  saying, 
All  power  is  given  unto  me  in  heaven  and  in  earth.  19 
Go  ye,  therefore,  and  teach  all  nations,  baptizing  them  hi 
the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy 
Ghost ;  20  Teaching  them  to  observe  all  things  whatso- 
ever I  have  commanded  you:  and,  lo,  I  am  with  you 
alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world. 

Mark  xvi.  15.  And  he  said  unto  them,  Go  ye  into  all 
the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature.  16 
He  that  believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved ;  but  he 
that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned.  19  So  then,  after 
the  Lord  had  spoken  unto  them,  he  was  received  up  into 
heaven,  and  sat  on  the  right  hand  of  God. 

How  solemn  and  interesting  was  this  occa- 
sion !  The  Eedeemer  had  undergone  the  "  bap- 
tism" of  his  sufferings  last   described.     The 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  33 

wrath,  of  God  had  been  poured  out  upon  him. 
He  had  been  crucified,  and  the  blood  had  been 
made  to  pour  down  from  his  hands,  his  feet, 
and  his  side ;  and,  after  the  bitter  cry  and 
agony,  he  had  given  up  the  ghost.  But  now 
he  is  risen  triumphant,  and  about  to  ascend  to 
glory.  He  had  appointed  his  disciples  to  meet 
him  on  a  mountain  of  Galilee,  where  he  was 
to  give  the  important  charge,  and  commission, 
contained  in  the  verses  above.  The  solemn 
hour  is  come ;  we  may  be  assured  the  disci- 
ples are  eager  to  catch  every  word  from  their 
ascending  Lord,  and  that  he  would  give  them 
his  directions  in  the  plainest  language  possi- 
ble. He  begins  by  encouraging  their  sorrow- 
ful minds  with  a  view  of  his  supreme  power 
in  heaven  and  earth ;  in  heaven  to  give  them 
the  Holy  Spirit,  to  employ  angels  in  their  be- 
half; and,  finally,  to  bestow  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  upon  them. 

So  also  he  had,  to  fulfil  the  prophecy  re- 
corded in  Isaiah  and  Ezekiel,  to  "  sprinkle 
many   nations,"  and  to   "sprinkle   clean 

WATER  UPON  THEM." 

You  may  be  sure  he  would  not  forget  this 
important  business.  Accordingly,  he  here  com- 
mands his  disciples  to  go  into  all  the  world, 


3d  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

and  teach  all  nations,  baptizing  (or  sprin- 
kling them,  as  the  prophets  had  said  he  would) 
in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  the  Son,  and 
of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

In  this  way,  and  this  only,  could  this  pro- 
phecy ever  be  fulfilled ;  and  if  this  is  not  the 
meaning  of  this  scripture,  and  the  fulfilment 
of  these  prophecies,  we  should  like  to  have 
our  brethren  tell  us  (if  they  can)  when  and 
where  and  how  this  is  ever  to  be  done. 

IX.  The  Acts  of  the  Apostles. 

We  have  now  read  and  examined,  as  far  as 
our  limits  would  admit,  all  the  passages  of  the 
four  Gospels  that  relate  to  our  inquiry.  We 
have  found  the  example,  the  practice,  and  the 
command  of  Christ  on  this  subject,  and  the 
most  striking  allusions ;  but  nowhere  can  we 
find  any  command,  example,  or  practice  of 
dipping  or  immersion. 

We  have  next  to  examine  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles,  to  ascertain  by  the  practice  of  the 
disciples  how  they  understood  the  command 
of  their  Lord;  so  that  if  we  have  any  way 
mistaken  his  commands,  their  obedience  and 
practice  will  most  certainly  correct  our  error; 
and  on  the  contrary,  if  we  have  rightly  under- 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  35 

stood   his  word,  their   practice  will   confirm 
our  opinions. 

"The  penman  of  this  scripture,"  the  As- 
sembly of  Divines,  in  their  argument  to  it, 
assure  us,  "was  Luke  the  Evangelist,  (as  ap- 
pears from  the  first  words  of  it,)  for  the  most 
part  an  eye-witness  to  the  things  he  records, 
being  constantly  a  fellow-laborer  with  Paul. 
His  purpose,"  they  add,  "in  writing  this  nar- 
rative, was,  as  he  intimates  in  his  first  preface, 
that  the  Church  might  have  the  certain  know- 
ledge of  Christ,  his  gospel,  and  kingdom ;  that 
our  faith  might  not  be  built  on  the  uncertain 
reports  of  pretenders  to  truth."  Hence,  ad- 
mitting the  writer  to  be  a  faithful  and  pious 
historian,  and  writing  purposely  for  the  direc- 
tion of  the  people  of  God  ever  after,  and, 
above  all,  under  the  influence  of  the  Spirit  of 
God,  we  may  safely  rely,  not  only  on  the  accu- 
racy of  the  accounts,  but  on  the  fulness  and 
sufficiency  of  the  information  to  answer  his 
professed  purpose. 

We  have  here  recorded  nine  instances  of 
the  administration  of  baptism.  If,  therefore, 
as  above  stated,  we  have  misunderstood  the 
Saviour's  commission,  the  apostles  certainly 
did  not;  and  hence  by  their  obedience  to,  it 


36  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

we  shall  find  an  infallible  interpretation  of  his 
will. 

And  first  let  us  see  what  mode  they  might 
naturally  have  expected  after  all  this  ;  and 
from  our  Saviour's  words,  when  he  promised 
the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  they 
should  receive  on  the  day  of  Pentecost. 

Acts  i.  4,  5.  And  [Jesus]  being  assembled  together  with 
them,  commanded  them  that  they  should  not  depart  from 
Jerusalem,  but  wait  for  the  promise  of  the  Father,  which, 
saith  he,  ye  have  heard  of  me.  For  John  truly  baptized 
with  water ;  but  ye  shall  be  baptized  with  the  Holy  Ghost 
not  many  days  hence. 

Now,  would  our  blessed  Saviour  have  traced 
any  resemblance  between  the  two  baptisms,  if 
one  had  been  by  dipping  f  If  dipping  had 
been  the  practice,  he  would  have  said,  "  John 
truly  baptized  by  dipping  people  into  the 
water ;  but  when  God  comes  to  baptize  them, 
his  way  is  very  different :  it  is  to  pour  out  his 
Spirit  upon  them."  But  if  John  baptized  by 
sprinkling  and  pouring  water,  (as  we  believe 
he  did,)  Christ's  language  was  perfectly  intel- 
ligible, and  it  seems  they  understood  him,  and 
did  not  ask  any  explanation.  "And  so  it 
came  to  pass  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  the 


THE    BIBLE    ON   BAPTISM.  37 

Spirit  was  poured  out  upon  them,  as  Jesus 
had  said." 

Acts  ii.  1.  And  when  the  day  of  Pentecost  was  fully 
come,  they  were  all  with  one  accord  in  one  place.  2  And 
suddenly  there  came  a  sound  from  heaven  as  of  a  rush- 
ing mighty  wind,  and  it  filled  all  the  house  where  they 
were  sitting.  3  And  there  appeared  unto  them  cloven 
tongues  like  as  of  fire,  and  it  sat  upox  each  of  them. 
4  And  they  were  all  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  began 
to  speak  with  other  tongues,  as  the  Spirit  gave  them 
utterance.  5  And  there  were  dwelling  at  Jerusalem 
Jews,  devout  men,  out  of  every  nation  under  heaven.  6 
Now,  when  this  was  noised  abroad,  the  multitude  came 
together,  and  were  confounded,  because  that  every  man 
heard  them  speak  in  his  own  language. 

12  And  they  were  all  amazed,  and  were  in  doubt,  say- 
ing one  to  another,  What  meaneth  this?  13  Others 
mocking  said,  These  men  are  full  of  new  wine.  14  But 
Peter,  standing  up  with  the  eleven,  lifted  up  his  voice, 
and  said  unto  them,  Ye  men  of  Judea,  and  all  ye  that 
dwell  at  Jerusalem,  be  this  known  unto  you,  and  hearken 
to  my  words :  15  For  these  are  not  drunken,  as  ye  sup- 
pose, seeing  it  is  but  the  third  hour  of  the  day.  16  But 
this  is  that  which  was  spoken  by  the  prophet  Joel;  17 
And  it  shall  come  to  pass  in  the  last  days,  saith  God,  I 
will  pour  out  of  my  Spirit  upon  all  flesh :  and  your 
sons  and  your  daughters  shall  prophesy,  and  your  young 
men  shall  see  visions,  and  your  old  men  shall  dream 
dreams :  18  And  on  my  servants,  and  on  my  handmaidens, 
I  will  pour  out  in  those  days  of  my  Spirit ;  and  they 
shall  prophesy. 

Here  we  see  the  fulfilment  of  our  Saviour's 

4 


38  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

promise,  and  prediction.  As  John  had  baptized 
them  by  sprinkling  or  pouring  water  upon 
them  to  signify  the  atonement  or  forgiveness 
of  sins  and  sanctification  by  the  Holy  Ghost, 
so  here  (as  their  sins  had  already  been  for- 
given) the  Holy  Ghost  was  poured  out  upon 
them,  to  sanctify  them,  and  fit  them  for  the 
arduous  work  committed  to  them ;  the  Spirit 
was  "shed  on  them  abundantly  through  Jesus 
Christ  our  Saviour."  Titus  iii.  7.  Now,  if 
John  had  used  dipping  in  his  baptism,  we  can 
see  no  kind  of  meaning  in  it,  nor  any  truth 
of  any  importance  to  be  signified  by  it. 

But,  in  the  true  way,  there  is  a  beautiful 
propriety  in  the  whole  ceremony ;  for  when- 
ever baptism  is  properly  administered,  it 
brings  to  mind  (by  the  pouring  and  the  sprin- 
kling of  water)  our  dependence  upon  the  in- 
fluence of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  enlighten,  con- 
vince, convert,  and  sanctify  the  soul;  and  so, 
when  the  Lord's  Supper  is  administered,  it  is 
to  show  forth  the  death  of  Christ  till  he  come, 
and  to  show  that  as  bread  is  broken  in  pieces, 
so  his  body  was  broken  for  us ;  and  when  the 
wine  is  poured  out,  it  represents  his  blood 
shed  and  poured  out  for  us.  These  are  the 
only  two  sacraments  of  the  Christian  church; 


THE   BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM.  39 

there  are  no  others.  The  one,  to  signify  the 
forgiveness  of  sins  through  the  blood  of  Christ ; 
the  other,  sanctification  by  the  Holy  Ghost. 
And  if  there  be  not  a  very  great  sin  in  this 
innovation,  there  certainly  can  be  no  pro- 
priety in  introducing  a  new  Sacrament,  to 
represent  the  burial  of  Christ,  which  is  of  no 
more  importance  than  his  crucifixion,  or  cir- 
cumcision, or  presentation  at  the  Temple,  or 
any  other  circumstance  of  his  life.  The  shed- 
ding of  his  blood  at  his  death  is  the  only 
thing  made  use  of  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  and 
prefigured  by  all  the  sacrifices  in  the  Jewish 
church,  to  point  out  the  great  doctrine  of  the 
atonement,  and  to  show  that  without  the  shed- 
ding of  blood  there  could  be  no  remission  or 
forgiveness  of  sins. 

X.  The  Baptism  at  Pentecost. 
Ten  days  after  the  ascension,  when  the 
apostles  and  disciples  were  together  at  Jeru- 
salem, it  pleased  God  to  accomplish  the  promise 
of  pouring  forth  upon  them  the  extraordinary 
gifts  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  By  this  divine  power, 
they  all  were  enabled  to  speak  in  different  lan- 
guages to  the  multitude  then  assembled  at 
Jerusalem   from    different   nations ;    so   that 


40  THE    BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

every  one  heard  in  his  own  tongue  the  won- 
derful works  of  God.  Some  having  spoken 
dishonorably  of  the  disciples,  Peter  stands 
forth  to  defend  them ;  after  which  he  delivers 
to  the  multitude  a  discourse,  in  which  -  he 
charges  the  Jews  with  having  crucified  the 
Lord  of  glory ;  but  that  God  had  raised  him 
from  the  dead  and  exalted  him  to  his  right 
hand,  as  the  only  Lord  and  Christ.  Upon 
this  follow  the  verses  relating  to  the  ordinance. 

Acts  ii.  37.  Now  when  they  heard  this,  they  were 
pricked  in  their  heart,  and  said  unto  Peter,  and  to  the 
rest  of  the  apostles,  Men  and  brethren,  what  shall  we 
do  ?  38  Then  Peter  said  unto  them,  Repent,  and  be 
baptized  every  one  of  you  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ 
for  the  remission  of  sins  ;  and  ye  shall  receive  the  gift 
of  the  Holy  Ghost, 

41  Then  they  that  gladly  received  his  word  were  bap- 
tized :  and  the  same  day  there  were  added  unto  them 
about  three  thousand  souls. 

Here  we  have  an  account  of  the  baptism 
of  three  thousand  persons  at  one  time  and  in 
one  place,  and  that  in  part  of  a  day. 

After  a  statement  of  the  discourse  of  Peter 
to  the  Jews,  delivered  on  the  morning  of  this 
day,  the  sacred  historian  adds,  "  With  many 
other  words  did  he  testify  and  exhort"  the 
multitude.     "  Then  they  that  gladly  received 


THE   BIBLE    OX   BAPTISM.  41 

his  word  were  baptized"  immediately,  on  the 
spot.  How  many  of  them?  About  three 
thousand.  To  believe  that  they  were  baptized 
by  sprinkling  or  pouring  involves  no  difficulty. 
Near  the  door  of  Jewish  houses  water-pots  were 
customarily  kept,  (see  John  iii.  6,)  which  could 
readily  have  served  for  this  occasion.  But  to 
suppose  that  three  thousand  persons  were  im- 
mersed in  Jerusalem  in  one  day,  is,  to  any  one 
familiar  with  Jerusalem  as  a  city,  or  its  arrange- 
ments for  water,  simply  absurd.  If  the  sacred 
historian  desired  to  have  the  impression  made 
upon  the  readers  of  the  Bible  that  these  per- 
sons were  immersed,  is  it  not  strange,  to  say 
the  least,  that  no  hint  is  given  which  would 
countenance  the  notion?  Where  were  they 
immersed?  How  long  would  the  ceremony 
have  taken  the  disciples  if  there  had  been  a 
place  in  which  even  two  or  three  could  have 
been  immersing  at  once  ?     (See  Section  II.) 

Not  a  hint  is  given  to  countenance  this  idea  of 
the  immersion  of  the  three  thousand.  Every 
probability  is  against  it.  Nothing  in  the  cir- 
cumstances or  in  the  narrative  gives  any  color 
to  the  idea.  But  if  pouring  or  sprinkling  was 
the  mode,  as  we  suppose,  then  the  whole  account 
appears  straight  and  consistent. 

4* 


42  THE   BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM. 

And  this  is  more  especially  the  case  if  we 
consider  the  fact  that  the  apostle  had  just  be- 
fore informed  them,  that  the  outpouring  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  was  an  express  fulfilment  of 
the  prophecy  of  the  prophet  Joel.  His  words 
are, 

For  these  are  not  drunken,  as  ye  suppose,  seeing  it  is 
but  the  third  hour  of  the  day  ;  but  this  is  that  which  was 
spoken  by  the  prophet  Joel ;  And  it  shall  come  to  pass 
in  the  last  days,  saith  God,  I  will  pour  out  of  my  Spirit 
upon  all  flesh :  and  your  sons  and  your  daughters  shall 
prophesy,  and  your  young  men  shall  see  visions,  and 
your  old  men  shall  dream  dreams :  and  on  my  servants, 
and  on  my  handmaidens,  I  will  pour  out  in  those  days 
of  my  Spirit ;  and  they  shall  prophesy. 

Had  there  been  a  sufficient  number  of  apos- 
tles to  dip  all  this  multitude  the  same  day, 
had  there  been  rivers  of  water  there,  what 
possible  analogy  or  representation  would  there 
be  between  the  outpouring  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  on  them,  and  dipping  them  in  the 
water  ?  Was  the  Spirit  applied  to  them,  or 
were  they  applied  to  the  Spirit?  Was  the 
Holy  Ghost  poured  out  upon  them,  or  were 
they  dipped  into  the  Holy  Ghost  ? 

The  Holy  Spirit  was  applied  to  them;  and 
we  are  compelled  to  believe  that  the  water  was 
also  applied  to  them  by  pouring  or  sprinkling; 


THE   BIBLE    ON   BAPTISM.  43 

and  that  they  were  not  applied  to  the  water 
by  dipping. 

These  considerations  amount  to  a  moral  de- 
monstration, that  the  mode  of  baptism  prac- 
tised by  the  apostles  was  not  immersion. 

XL  Philip  Baptizing  at  Samaria. 

This  Philip  was  a  deacon  of  the  church  at 
Jerusalem,  chosen  to  that  office  with  Stephen. 
(Acts  vi.  5.)  Stephen  had  not  entered  the 
ministry  long  before  he  was  called  upon  to 
suffer  martyrdom  in  the  cause  of  his  Lord. 
Philip's  labors  and  success  are  thus  described  : 

Acts  viii.  5.  Then  Philip  -went  down  to  the  city  of 
Samaria,  and  preached  Christ  unto  them.  6  And  the 
people  with  one  accord  gave  heed  unto  those  things 
which  Philip  spake,  hearing  and  seeing  the  miracles 
which  he  did.  8  And  there  was  great  joy  in  that  city. 
12  But  when  they  believed  Philip  preaching  the  things 
concerning  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  the  name  of  Jesus 
Christ,  they  were  baptized,  both  men  and  women.  13 
Then  Simon  himself  believed  also ;  and  when  he  was 
baptized,  he  continued  with  Philip,  and  wondered,  be- 
holding the  miracles  and  signs  which  were  done. 

There  is  nothing  said  here  to  show  any 
thing  particular  about  the  mode.  jSTo  doubt 
these  were  baptized  in  the  common  way,  by 


44  THE    BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM. 

sprinkling  and  pouring,  as  nothing  had  taken 
place  to  make  any  alteration  in  the  work. 

Samaria  was  built  upon  a  mountain,  (as  is 
well  known  and  appears  from  John  iv.  20,  1 
Kings  xvi.  24,  I.  vol.  Josephus,  p.  292,  Phila- 
delphia edition,  by  J.  Gregg,  1829,)  and  con- 
sequently there  could  be  no  stream  running 
through  it,  and,  in  order  to  get  any  water,  the 
people  had  to  dig  their  wells  very  deep.  Now, 
if  these  converts  were  baptized  in  Samaria, 
they  certainly  were  not  dipped.  No  intima- 
tion is  given  that  they  left  the  city,  nor  any 
account  of  any  river  anywhere  near,  or 
change  of  clothes,  or  any  circumstances  what- 
ever, to  lead  to  the  inference  that  these  con- 
verts were  dipped  ;  nor  would  any  person 
ever  suppose  that  such  a  mode  was  practised, 
unless  his  mind  was  previously  prejudiced, 
and  he  was  determined  to  believe  it,  in  oppo- 
sition to  all  evidence. 

XII.  The  Baptism  of  the  Ethiopian 
Eunuch. 

The  eunuch  described  in  this  chapter  was 
a  person  of  high  importance  in  the  kingdom 
of  Ethiopia,  but  a  proselyte  to  the  Jewish 
religion.     He  was  now  returning  from  Jeru- 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  45 

salem,  whither  he  had  gone  to  worship  at  one 
of  the  public  festivals,  when  Philip  is  directed 
to  meet  him,  and  to  teach  him  what,  with  so 
much  success,  he  had  taught  the  Samaritans. 
He  found  the  eunuch  sitting  in  his  chariot, 
reading  the  prophet  Isaiah,  chap.  liii.  7,  8,  He 
was  led  as  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter,  &c.  Philip 
having  asked  him  if  he  understood  the  prophet, 
the  eunuch  acknowledged  his  inability  without 
assistance,  and  wished  Philip  to  explain  to 
him  whether  the  prophet,  in  that  place,  spake 
of  himself  or  of  some  other ;  and  took  him  up 
into  his  chariot  for  that  purpose ;  upon  which 
we  read, 

Acts  viii.  35.  Then  Philip  opened  his  mouth,  and  began 
at  the  same  scripture,  and  preached  unto  him  Jesus.  36 
And  as  they  went  on  their  way,  they  came  unto  a  certain 
water;  and  the  eunuch  said,  See,  here  is  water:  what 
doth  hinder  me  to  be  baptized  ?  37  And  Philip  said,  If 
thou  believest  with  all  thine  heart,  thou  mayest.  And  he 
answered,  and  said,  I  believe  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son 
of  God.  38  And  he  commanded  the  chariot  to  stand  still : 
and  they  went  down  both  into  the  water,  both  Philip  and 
the  eunuch  ;  and  he  baptized  him.  And  when  they  were 
come  up  out  of  the  water,  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  caught, 
away  Philip,  that  the  eunuch  saw  him  no  more:  and  he 
went  on  his  way  rejoicing. 

This  passage  has   often   been   quoted  as  a 


46  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

strong  and  conclusive  proof  of  the  correctness 
of  the  mode  of  dipping.  And  the  going  down 
into  the  water,  and  coming  up  out  of  the 
water,  is  quoted  on  all  occasions,  as  one  of  the 
main  pillars  to  that  whole  system ;  as  if  the 
going  down  into  the  water  was  the  baptism 
itself.  But  a  moment's  consideration  will 
show  that  the  baptism  was  something  which 
was  done  after  they  went  down  into  the  water, 
or  "  to  the  water,"  as  it  undoubtedly  could  as 
well  be  rendered.  For  after  they  went  down 
into  (or  to)  the  water,  it  is  said,  "  he  baptized 
him."  Now,  how,  or  in  what  manner  or  mode, 
this  baptism  was  performed,  the  Scripture  does 
not  say ;  it  is  perfectly  silent;  and  we  have  as 
good  a  right  to  say  that  it  was  done  by  pouring 
or  sprinkling,  after  they  wrent  into  the  water,  as 
others  have  to  assert  roundly,  without  an  atom 
of  Scripture  proof,  that  it  was  done  by  dip- 
ping. 

The  truth  is,  the  Scripture  is  silent,  in  this 
place,  as  to  the  mode. 

Now,  it  is  indisputable,  that  if  all  the  other 
baptisms  were  by  affusion  or  sprinkling,  (as 
we  have  proved,)  then  this  would  have  been 
so  too.  But  we  have  proof  strong  enough, 
independent  of  any  thing  we  have  said  before, 


THE   BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM.  47 

to  carry  demonstration  to  every  unprejudiced 
mind. 

It  seems  the  Ethiopian  eunuch  was  reading 
in  the  fifty-second  and  fifty-third  chapters  of 
Isaiah,  in  which  the  prophet  was  describing 
the  character  and  mission  of  Christ,  and  what 
he  was  to  do  and  suffer,  &c.  And,  in  a  part 
of  this  very  passage  which  he  was  reading,  it 
was  predicted  of  Christ,  among  other  things, 
that  when  he  came  "he  should    spkinkle 

MANY  NATIONS." 

Now,  when  the  eunuch  was  told  who  this 
person  was  of  whom  the  prophet  spake,  that 
it  was  Jesus  Christ,  that  he  had  actually  come, 
and  suffered  all  which  the  prophet  had  fore- 
told, for  the  remission  of  sin;  he  very  natu- 
rally asked,  when  they  came  to  a  certain 
water,  "  What  does  hinder  me  to  be  baptized, 
(i.e.  sprinkled,)  since  this  great  Saviour  has 
come,  who  was  to  sprinkle  many  nations,  and 
I  am  one  of  those  nations  he  was  to  sprinkle?" 
Philip  told  him,  if  he  believed  with  all  his 
heart,  he  might.  He  immediately  professed 
his  faith  in  Christ,  and  Philip  took  him  down 
into  the  water,  and  baptized  him.  Probably 
they  both  stepped  a  little  way  into  the  water, 
(as  it  was  a  warm  climate,)  so  that  Philip 


48  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

might  more  easily  take  up  a  little  water  in 
his  hand,  and  sprinkle  him.  There  was  no 
other  handy  way  to  get  to  the  water  but  to 
go  down  into  it,  or  down  to  it,  (as  it  might 
with  equal  propriety  have  been  rendered,)  and 
so,  of  course,  they  must  come  up  out  of  the 
water,  or  come  up  from  it,  to  get  back  again 
to  the  chariot.  But  can  any  person  in  his 
senses  believe  that  Philip  would  take  the 
eunuch  down  into  the  water  and  dip  him, 
to  fulfil  a  prophecy  about  sprinkling  ? 

What  is  the  whole  amount  of  evidence  to 
show  that  the  eunuch  was  dipped  ?  Why,  he 
went  with  Philip  mfo*  the  water,  and  came 
out  as;ain,  as  a  matter  of  course:  this  is  all. 
No  man  of  reason  can  say  this  evidence  is 
conclusive,  because  nothing  is  said  as  to  the 
mode.  That  he  was  dipped,  is  merely  an  in- 
ference. It  is  asked,  Why  did  they  go  down 
into  the  water,  unless  the  eunuch  was  im- 
mersed ?  Now,  you  perceive  that  this  is  only 
an  inference;  otherwise  the  fact  would  be 
stated  in  precise  language.     The  case,  there- 

*  Supposing  this  to  be  the  true  rendering,  and  not  that 
"  they  went  down  to  and  came  up  from  the  water." 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  49 

fore,  is  to  be  decided  by  probabilities.  All 
know  that  a  man  may  go  into  the  water  with- 
out going  under  it.  Certainly  Philip  did  not 
go  under  the  water,  although  he  went  into  it, 
as  well  as  the  eunuch.  The  most  that  can 
be  claimed  is,  that  there  is  a  probability  that 
dipping  was  used;  but  I  maintain  that  even 
this  is  not  the.  case.  It  is  not  probable  that 
he  was  dipped,  because — 1st.  The  eunuch  was 
reading  about  sprinkling,  as  expressive  of  the 
work  of  the  Holy  G-host,  which  work  was  to 
be  represented  by  the  application  of  the  water 
in  baptism.  2d.  No  account  is  given  of  a 
river,  or  any  body  of  water  that  was  suffi- 
cient to  dip  a  person;  they  were  travelling 
along,  and  saw  some  water,  and  the  presump- 
tion is,  that  it  was  no  more  than  a  very  small 
stream,  or  watering-place,  not  sufficient  to 
immerse  a  person. 

Why,  then,  it  will  be  asked,  did  they  go 
down  into  the  water  at  all?  I  reply,  that 
whether  they  went  to  it,  or  into  it,  it  was  in 
order  that  Philip  might  more  easily  sprinkle 
water  upon  him,  to  represent  the  work  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  and  to  fulfil  the  prophecy  which 
he  had  just  read. 


50  THE   BIBLE  ON  BAPTISM. 

XIII.  The  Baptism  of  Paul. 

Saul,  while  breathing  out  threatenings 
against  the  disciples  of  Christ,  is  met  in  his 
career  of  persecution  by  the  Lord  himself,  at 
whose  exceeding  glory,  and  powerful  word,  he 
falls  prostrate  and  blind  to  the  ground.  Ana- 
nias, a  devout  disciple,  is  directed  of  God  to 
go  to  him,  and  teach  him  what  he  is  to  do, 
and,  for  his  encouragement  in  visiting  the  per- 
secutor, Ananias  is  informed  that  Saul  was 
praying,  and  that  God  had  made  him  a  chosen 
vessel  to  himself. 

Acts  ix.  8.  And  Saul  arose  from  the  earth ;  and  when 
his  eyes  were  opened,  he  saw  no  man:  but  they  led  him 
by  the  hand,  and  brought  him  into  Damascus. 

And  he  was  three  days  without  sight,  and  neither  did 
eat  nor  drink.     See  verses  10,  11,  12,  13,  14,  15. 

Acts  ix.  17.  And  Ananias  went  his  way,  and  entered 
into  the  house  ;  and  putting  his  hands  on  him,  said,  Bro- 
ther Saul,  the  Lord,  even  Jesus,  that  appeared  unto  thee 
in  the  way  as  thou  earnest,  hath  sent  me,  that  thou 
mightest  receive  thy  sight,  and  be  filled  with  the  Holy 
Ghost.  Chap.  xxii.  14.  And  he  said,  The  God  of  our 
fathers  hath  chosen  thee,  that  thou  shouldest  know  his 
will,  and  see  that  Just  One,  and  shouldest  hear  the  voice 
of  his  mouth.  15  For  thou  shalt  be  his  witness  unto  all 
men  of  what  thou  hast  seen  and  heard.  16  And  now 
why  tarriest  thou  ?  arise,  and  be  baptized,  and  wash 
away  thy  sins,  calling  on  the  name  of  the  Lord.     Chap. 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  51 

ix.  18.  And  immediately  there  fell  from  his  eyes  as  it 
had  been  scales ;  and  he  received  sight  forthwith,  and 
arose,  and  was  baptized. 

Acts  ix.  19.  And  when  he  had  received  meat,  he  was 
strengthened. 

There  need  be  little  said  upon  these  passages, 
for  there  is  nothing  said  about  their  going  out 
of  the  house,  to  any  river,  or  coming  in  again. 
Ananias  only  told  him  to  "arise,"  or  stand  up, 
and  be  baptized ;  and  then  Ananias  probably 
sprinkled  or  poured  water  upon  his  head. 

No  impartial  person,  in  reading  this  account, 
but  must  conclude  that  in  whatever  mode  the 
water  was  applied,  it  certainly  was  not  done 
by  dipping.  Paul  was  in  a  house;  he  was 
weak  from  fasting,  and  could  have  had  no 
previous  intimation  that  he  was  to  be  bap- 
tized. In  this  condition  Ananias  met  him  ; 
and  when  he  received  sight,  Paul  arose  and 
was  baptized.  You  observe  that  Paul  did 
not  leave  the  house,  nor  did  he  change  his 
clothes;  but  he  "arose,"  that  is,  stood  up, 
and  received  the  ordinance. 

Now,  according  to  the  Baptists'  notion,  a 
person  must  be  buried  in  the  water ;  but  so 
far  was  Paul  from  being  buried,  that  he  stood 
up  when  the  water  was  applied,  and  conse- 


52  THE  BIBLE  ON   BAPTISM. 

quently  could  not  be  dipped.  If  you  are 
willing,  reader,  to  follow  the  example  of  this 
apostle,  then  you  must  receive  the  water  in 
an  erect  posture,  and  not  in  a  horizontal  one. 
And,  as  we  said  before,  dipping  could  not  re- 
present the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which 
he  had  just  received,  nor  remission  of  sins  by 
the  sprinkling  of  the  blood  of  Christ. 

XIV.  The  Baptism  of  Cornelius  and  his 
Friends. 

The  next  instance  is  a  record  of  the  first 
Gentiles  that  were  baptized  and  received  into 
the  number  of  the  disciples.  Cornelius  was  a 
devout  man,  and  one  that  feared  God  with  all 
his  house.  He  is  directed  from  Heaven  to 
send  for  Peter  the  apostle,  who  should  unfold 
to  him  the  mysteries  of  the  gospel  of  Christ. 
Cornelius,  against  the  apostle's  coming,  called 
together  his  kinsmen  and  near  friends,  to  hear 
the  will  of  God,  and  requested  Peter,  when 
arrived,  to  declare  all  that  God  had  com- 
manded him.  The  apostle  begins  his  dis- 
course by  testifying  that  he  evidently  saw 
that  God  respected  not  the  persons  of  men, 
but  everywhere,  of  every  nation,  he  was  ac- 
cepted with  God  who  feareth  him  and  worketh 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  53 

righteousness ;  and  after  having  taught  them 
the  leading  doctrines  of  the  gospel,  he  con- 
cludes by  repeating  (in  the  first  two  verses 
below)  what  Christ  had  commissioned  his 
apostles  to  do  as  their  first  and  chief  work, 
and  the  testimony  of  the  prophets  concerning 
him;  after  which  we  have  the  ordinance  in 
question. 

Acts  x.  42.  And  he  commanded  us  to  preach  unto  the 
people,  and  to  testify  that  it  is  he  which  was  ordained  of 
God  to  be  the  Judge  of  quick  and  dead.  To  him  give  all 
the  prophets  witness,  that  through  his  name  whosoever 
believeth  in  him  shall  receive  remission  of  sins. 

While  Peter  yet  spake  these  words,  the  Holy  Ghost 
fell  on  all  them  which  heard  the  word.  And  they  of  the 
circumcision  which  believed  were  astonished,  as  many 
as  came  with  Peter,  because  that  on  the  Gentiles  also 
was  poured  out  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  For  they 
heard  them  speak  with  tongues,  and  magnify  God.  Then 
answered  Peter,  Can  any  man  forbid  water,  that  these 
should  not  be  baptized,  which  have  received  the  Holy 
Ghost  as' well  as  we  ?  And  he  commanded  them  to  be 
baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.  Then  prayed  they 
him  to  tarry  certain  days. 

Now,  this  passage  of  Scripture  is  very  plain, 
and  needs  little  comment.  As  the  Holy  Ghost 
fell  on  all  them  which  heard  the  word,  how 
natural  it  was  for  Peter  to  say,  "  Can  any 
man   forbid   water"  (to   be   brought)  and  to 

5* 


54  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

pour  it  out  upon  them  upon  whom  had  just 
been  poured  out  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost  ? 

You  hear  nothing  of  their  going  out  of  the 
house,  to  a  river  or  pool;  but  it  seems  the 
water  was  brought  into  the  house  at  the  com- 
mand of  Peter,  and  that  they  were  all  bap- 
tized in  the  house,  in  the  usual  way,  by  sprin- 
kling or  pouring. 

Here  the  only  reason  given  by  Peter  why 
these  should  be  baptized  was,  that  the  Holy 
Ghost  had  just  been  poured  out  upon  them. 
But  there  could  have  been  no  analogy  to  the 
pouring  out  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  if  they  had 
been  dipped.  For,  1.  They  were  not  dipped 
into  the  Holy  Ghost,  but  the  Holy  Ghost  was 
poured  upon  them.  2.  They  were  not  applied 
to  the  Holy  Ghost,  but  the  Holy  Ghost  was 
applied  to  them. 

XV.  The  Baptism  of  Lydia  and  her 

Household. 

Paul,  whose  baptism  we  have  just  consi- 
dered, is  now  become  a  most  zealous  apostle. 
He,  with  Silas,  (and  with  them,  probably, 
Luke,  the  writer  of  this  history,)  are  sent  to 
Macedonia,  and  to  Philippi,  a  chief  city  of  it, 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  55 

to  preach  the  gospel.  Being  arrived,  they 
began  their  work  in  the  following  way  and 
with  the  following  success  : 

Acts  xvi.  13.  And  on  the  Sabbath  we  went  out  of  the 
city  by  a  river-side,  where  prayer  was  wont  to  be  made  ; 
and  we  sat  down,  and  spake  unto  the  women  which  re- 
sorted thither.  And  a  certain  woman  named  Lydia,  a 
seller  of  purple,  of  the  city  of  Thyatira,  which  worshipped 
God,  heard  us:  whose  heart  the  Lord  opened,  that  she 
attended  unto  the  things  which  were  spoken  of  Paul. 
And  when  she  was  baptized,  and  her  household,  she  be- 
sought us,  saying,  If  ye  have  judged  me  to  be  faithful  to 
the  Lord,  come  into  my  house,  and  abide  there.  And  she 
constrained  us. 

There  is  nothing  very  particular  in  this 
passage.  Lydia,  it  seems,  went  out  of  the 
city  to  a  prayer-meeting  by  the  side  of  a 
river, — perhaps  the  river  Strymon,  which  runs 
near  the  city  of  Philippi;  and,  as  she  was 
converted  at  this  place,  it  is  quite  possible 
that  she  was  also  baptized  there.  This  cir- 
cumstance, if  so,  would  not  determine  any 
thing  about  the  mode.  From  the  habits  of 
the  East,  it  is  in  the  highest  degree  impro- 
bable that  the  apostle  would  lead  females  into 
the  river  and  immerse  them. 

Here  it  must  be  observed  that  a  prayer- 
meeting  was  held  by  the  river-side.     A  ques- 


56  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

tion  naturally  arises,  why  was  such,  a  place 
selected  merely  for  the  purpose  of  devotion  ? 
This  assembly  was  doubtless  composed  of  Jews, 
and  therefore  it  is  perfectly  certain  that  they 
did  not  select  the  river-side  for  the  conve- 
nience of  administering  baptism.  What  then  ? 
It  is  alleged  that  John  chose  Enon  and  Jor- 
dan because  much  water  was  needed  for  dip- 
ping his  converts :  nay,  they  infer  that  dipping 
was  the  mode  he  practised,  on  account  of  the 
mention  of  much  water.  But  here  a  river  is 
selected  for  a  religious  meeting  when  baptism 
was  not  to  be  administered  at  all.  How  is 
this  to  be  accounted  for  ?  Evidently,  the  fact 
of  selecting  the  river's  edge  for  divine  wor- 
ship, or  a  place  having  "  much  water"  for  the 
gathering  of  a  multitude,  affords  no  reason 
either  for  or  against  any  mode  of  baptism. 

XVI.  The  Baptism  of  the  Philippian 
Jailer  and  Household. 

Paul  and  Silas,  having  been  cast  into  prison 
at  Philippi,  were  delivered  from  their  confine- 
ment at  midnight,  by  the  miraculous  inter- 
position of  God.  An  earthquake  shook  the 
foundations  of  the  prison,  so  that  the  doors  of 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  57 

it  were  opened,  and  the  prisoners'  bands  loosed. 
The  jailer,  suspecting  the  escape  of  the  pri- 
soners, drew  his  sword  to  destroy  himself, 
which  Paul  prevented,  by  assuring  him  the 
prisoners  were  all  there.  Upon  this  we  read 
of  his  conversion  and  baptism. 

Acts  xvi.  29.  Then  he  called  for  a  light,  and  sprang  in, 
and  came  trembling,  and  fell  down  before  Paul  and  Silas, 
30  And  brought  them  out,  and  said,  Sirs,  what  must  I 
do  to  be  saved?  31  And  they  said,  Believe  on  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  and  thou  shalt  be  saved,  and  thy  house.  32 
And  they  spake  unto  him  the  word  of  the  Lord,  and  to 
all  that  were  in  his  house.  33  And  he  took  them  the 
same  hour  of  the  night,  and  washed  their  stripes  ;  and 
was  baptized,  he  and  all  his,  straightway. 

As  the  jailer  and  his  household  were  bap- 
tized straightway,  or  on  the  spot,  it  is  in  the 
highest  degree  improbable  that  they  were  im- 
mersed. No  one,  not  determined  to  believe  it, 
will  suppose  that  there  is  any  likelihood  of 
accommodations  for  such  a  submersion  in  this 
prison.  The  water  for  washing  their  stripes 
would  be  amply  sufficient  for  baptizing  in  the 
generally  received  mode. 

That  the  jailer  left  his  prisoners  to  go 
abroad  to  a  stream  is  not  supposable,  and 
would  contradict  the  narrative. 


58  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

XVII.  Paul  Baptizing  at  Corinth. 

Acts  xviii.  4.  And  he  reasoned  in  the  synagogue  every 
Sabbath,  and  persuaded  the  Jews  and  the  Greeks.  5  And 
when  Silas  and  Timotheus  were  come  from  Macedonia, 
Paul  was  pressed  in  the  spirit,  and  testified  to  the  Jews 
that  Jesus  was  Christ.  8  And  Crispus,  the  chief  ruler 
of  the  synagogue,  believed  on  the  Lord  with  all  his  house ; 
and  many  of  the  Corinthians  hearing  believed,  and  were 
baptized. 

A  church  being  formed  in  this  place,  Paul 
afterwards  writes  them  two  epistles.  In  the 
first  of  these  he  laments  the  unhappy  divisions 
that  prevailed  among  them,  in  contending  for 
different  ministers,  as  if  they  had  so  many 
Saviours  and  had  been  baptized  in  their  sepa- 
rate names.     Upon  which  he  reasons  : 

1  Cor.  i.  13.  Is  Christ  divided?  was  Paul  crucified  for 
you  ?  or  were  ye  baptized  in  the  name  of  Paul  ?  14  I  thank 
God  that  I  baptized  none  of  you,  but  Crispus  and  Gaius : 
15  Lest  any  should  say  that  I  had  baptized  in  mine  own 
name.  16  And  I  baptized  also  the  household  of  Stepha- 
nas: besides,  I  know  not  whether  I  baptized  any  other. 
17  For  Christ  sent  me  not  to  baptize,  but  to  preach  the 
gospel. 

Paul  at  Corinth,  as  at  all  other  places,  be- 
gins his  work  by  testifying  to  the  people  "  the 
things  concerning  Jesus  Christ."  He  con- 
tinued his  labors  at  Corinth  a  year  and  six 


THE    BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  59 

months,  in  which  time  many,  hearing  his 
preaching,  believed  and  were  baptized.  He 
himself  baptized  but  few,  and  in  this  he  after- 
ward rejoiced;  for,  he  adds,  the  first  and  chief 
work  for  which  Christ  sent  him  was,  not  to 
baptize,  but  to  preach  the  gospel. 

Here  we  are  not  told  any  thing  about  the 
mode. 

XVIII.  Disciples  at  Ephesus  baptized. 

This  is  the  ninth  and  last  place,  in  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles,  relative  to  our  present 
inquiries.  The  question  whether  the  persons, 
in  this  instance,  were  baptized  twice,  first  with 
John's  baptism,  and  now  Christ's,  does  not 
concern  us.  As  to  the  mode,  there  is  no  hint 
given.  Were  immersion  essential,  it  would 
be  strange  that  we  should  be  thus  left  in  the 
dark  as  to  its  being  practised  by  the  apostles. 

Acts  xix.  1.  Paul,  having  passed  through  the  upper 
coasts,  came  to  Ephesus ;  and  finding  certain  disciples,  2 
He  said  unto  them,  Have  ye  received  the  Holy  Ghost  since 
ye  believed?  And  they  said  unto  him,  We  have  not  so 
much  as  heard  whether  there  be  any  Holy  Ghost.  3  And 
he  said  unto  them,  Unto  what  then  were  ye  baptized  ?  and 
they  said,  Unto  John's  baptism.  4  Then  said  Paul,  John 
verily  baptized  with  the  baptism  of  repentance,  saying 
unto  the  people,  that  they  should  believe  on  him  which 


60  THE   BIBLE  ON  BAPTISM. 

should  come  after  him,  that  is,  on  Christ  Jesus.  5  When 
they  heard  this,  they  were  baptized  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord  Jesus. 

XIX.  Supposed  Allusions  to  Baptism  as 
a  Burial. 

Rom.  vi.  1.  What  shall  we  say  then?  Shall  we  con- 
tinue in  sin,  that  grace  may  abound  ?  2  God  forbid.  How 
shall  we,  that  are  dead  to  sin,  live  any  longer  therein  ? 
3  Know  ye  not  that  so  many  of  us  as  were  baptized  into 
Jesus  Christ  were  baptized  into  his  death  ?  4  Therefore 
we  are  buried  with  him  by  baptism  into  death ;  that  like 
as  Christ  was  raised  up  from  the  dead  by  the  glory  of  the 
Father,  even  so  we  also  should  walk  in  newness  of  life. 
5  For  if  we  have  been  planted  together  in  the  likeness  of 
his  death,  we  shall  be  also  in  the  likeness  of  his  resurrec- 
tion. 6  Knowing  this,  that  our  old  man  is  crucified  with 
him,  that  the  body  of  sin  might  be  destroyed,  that  hence- 
forth we  should  not  serve  sin. 

Col.  ii.  12.  Buried  with  him  in  baptism,  wherein  also 
ye  are  risen  with  him  through  the  faith  of  the  operation 
of  God,  who  hath  raised  him  from  the  dead. 

These  passages  are  often  quoted  and  much, 
relied  upon  to  establish  the  doctrine  of  im- 
mersion. An  examination  of  the  apostle's 
argument  will  show  the  danger  of  building  so 
important  a  dogma  upon  a  foundation  which 
exists  merely  in  a  fancied  resemblance  of 
words  to  facts. 

It  is  said  that  this  being  buried  with  Christ 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  61 

in  baptism  can  mean  nothing  but  immersion, 
and  therefore  immersion  is  the  only  proper 
mode  of  baptism.  As  Christ  was  laid  in  the 
grave  and  covered  up,  say  Baptists,  so  we  lay 
a  person  in  the  water.  And  as  he  rose  from 
the  grave,  so  we  raise  the  person  out  of  the 
"watery  grave." 

But  what  resemblance  has  immersion  to  the 
burial  of  Christ?  Does  any  one  believe  that 
Christ  was  put  into  a  coffin,  that  he  was  let 
down  into  a  grave,  and  covered  up  with  earth  ? 
No !  Every  one  knows  that  Christ  was  not 
buried  at  all,  in  the  modem  sense  of  the  word. 
People  are  carried  away  by  the  mere  sound 
of  words. 

Our  Lord  was  laid,  according  to  the  custom 
of  the  Jews,  in  a  niche  or  shelf,  cut  in  a  room 
hewn  out  of  the  solid  rock,  and  doubtless 
above  ground.  Multitudes  of  such  tombs  may 
now  be  seen  around  Jerusalem.  Says  the 
Evangelist,  (Matt,  xxvii.  59-60,)  "  When  Jo- 
seph had  taken  the  body,  he  wrapped  it  in  a 
clean  linen  cloth  and  laid  it  in  his  own  new 
tomb,  which  he  had  hewn  out  in  the  rock. 
And  he  rolled  a  great  stone  to  the  door  of  the 
sepulchre." 

After  his  resurrection,  the  women  came,  and, 


62  THE    BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM. 

finding  the  stone  rolled  away  from  the  door  of 
the  sepulchre,  "entering  into  the  sepulchre 
(Mark  xvi.  1-5)  saw  a  young  man  sitting  on 
the  right  side." 

Where  is  the  likeness  to  the  "watery  grave" 
upon  which  our  brethren  are  so  fond  of  dwell- 
ing ?  If  they  will  note  the  apostles  argument 
in  his  Epistle  to  the  Komans,  it  will  not  be  very 
difficult  to  see  that  he  has  something  very 
different  from  the  mode  of  baptism  in  his  eye, 
and  that  the  allusion  to.  "burial  in  baptism" 
has  a  higher  significance. 

Let  the  reader  carefully  consider  the  pass- 
age, and,  with  his  eye  upon  the  Bible,  see  if 
this  is  not  its  bearing. 

The  question  which  the  apostle  meets  is  this : 
"Does  God's  scheme  of  justifying  men  by  faith 
lead  them  to  continue  in  sin?"  His  answer 
is,  "No!  By  the  very  profession  which  he 
makes  in  baptism  he  acknowledges  his  obliga- 
tion to  live  a  new  life  of  holiness." 

(V.  2.)  How  shall  we,  that  are  dead  to  sin, 
dead  to  its  power  and  dominion,  live  any 
longer  therein? 

(V.  3.)  So  many  of  us  as  were  baptized  into 
Jesus  Christ,  into  a  profession  of  faith  in  Jesus 
Christ,  were  baptized  into  his  death;  we  en- 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  63 

tered  into  an  engagement  to  fulfil  the  purpose 
for  which  he  died,  that  is,  the  abolishing  of 
sin. 

(V.  4.)  Therefore  we  are  buried  with  him 
by  baptism  into  death ;  as  Christ  died  and  was 
buried,  so  we  die  to  sin  (see  v.  2)  and  are 
buried  to  it;  we  utterly  forsake  it  and  re- 
nounce its'  dominion.  That,  like  as  Christ 
was  raised  up  from  the  dead,  even  so  we  also 
should  walk  in  newness  of  life.  "We  die  to  sin 
and  rise  to  a  new  life  of  holiness. 

Does,  then,  justification  by  faith  encourage 
us  to  live  in  sin  ? 

No !  In  our  profession,  made  at  baptism,  we 
have  become  dead  to  sin;  and,  being  devoted 
to  him  by  that  baptism,  we  are  bound  to  rise, 
as  he  rose,  to  a  new  life,  a  holy  life,  a  life 
freed  from  the  dominion  of  sin.  Buried  thus 
with  him  in  baptism,  we  rise  with  him  to  walk 
in  newness  of  life. 

Still  further  to  illustrate  the  idea,  the 
apostle,  in  verse  5,  uses  the  figure  of  seeds 
sown  together;  we  and  Christ  united  in  this 
matter  of  death,  and  rising  together;  and,  in 
verse  6,  again,  of  our  old  nature  being  cruci- 
fied with  him. 

The  quotation  from  Colossians  (chap.  ii.  12) 


64  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

has  a  similar  purport.  It  is  a  favorite  thought 
of  the  Apostle  Paul.  Thus  (in  Galatians  ii.  20) 
he  says,  "  I  am  crucified  with  Christ,"  meaning 
the  same  thing,  and  not  that  he  was  either 
planted,  or  buried,  or  crucified.  It  was  the 
Christian's  profession  in  baptism,  not  the  mode 
of  baptism,  that  occupied  his  attention.  What 
can  be  more  fallacious  than  to  argue  that  no 
one  can  be  baptized  unless  he  is  entirely  im- 
mersed under  water,  from  such  passages  as 
these? 

XX.  Occasional  Mention  of  Baptism. 

Eph.  iv.  5.  One  Lord,  one  faith,  one  baptism. 

1  Cor.  xii.  13.  For  by  one  Spirit  we  are  all  baptized 
into  one  body,  whether  we  be  Jews  or  Gentiles,  whether 
we  be  bond  or  free ;  and  have  been  all  made  to  drink  into 
one  Spirit. 

Gal.  iii.  27.  For  as  many  of  you  as  have  been  baptized 
into  Christ  have  put  on  Christ. 

1  Cor.  xv.  29.  Else  what  shall  they  do  which  are  bap- 
tized for  the  dead,  if  the  dead  rise  not  at  all  ?  why  are 
they  then  baptized  for  the  dead  ? 

To  the  Ephesians  and  Corinthians  the 
apostle  is  here  recommending  peace  and  unity ; 
that  they  should  be  all  of  one  heart  and  mind, 
so  that  there  be  no  schism  in  the  body,  as  all 
were  one  in  Christ:  to  urge  which,  he  puts 


THE    BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM.  65 

them  in  mind  of  what  they  were  taught  at 
the  first,  that  there  was  but  "  one  Lord,  one 
faith,  one  baptism,"  and  that  "all  were  bap- 
tized into  one  body,  whether  Jews  or  Gen- 
tiles." 

There  is  nothing  in  these  passages  which 
affects  what  we  have  said  before  about  the 
mode.  They  show,  indeed,  how  wrong  it  is 
for  baptized  Christians  to  be  divided  about 
the  mode  of  baptism.  Various  interpretations 
are  given  of  the  last  passage;  but,  as  they 
have  no  bearing  on  the  mode,  it  is  foreign  to 
our  purpose  to  consider  them. 

XXI.  Baptism  Illustrated  by  Events 
Becorded  in  the  Old  Testament. 

These  are  the  last  passages  we  find  in  the 
New  Testament  which  relate  to  the  subject : 

1  Cor.  x.  1.  Moreover,  brethren,  I  would  not  that  ye 
should  be  ignorant,  how  that  all  our  fathers  were  under 
the  cloud,  and  all  passed  through  the  sea,  2  And  were  all 
baptized  unto  Moses  in  the  cloud  and  in  the  sea. 

1  Pet,  iii.  20.  The  long-suffering  of  God  waited  in  the 
days  of  Noah,  while  the  ark  was  a  preparing,  wherein 
few,  that  is,  eight  souls,  were  saved  by  water.  21  The 
like  figure  whereunto  even  baptism  doth  also  now  save 
us,  (not  the  putting  away  of  the  filth  of  the  flesh,  but 
6* 


66  THE   BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM. 

the  answer  of  a  good  conscience  toward  God,)  by  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ. 

The  better  to  understand  the  Apostle  Paul, 
in  the  first  passage  above,  the  reader  would 
do  well  to  peruse  the  place,  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, to  which  he  refers,  viz.  Exod.  xiv. 
From  this  chapter,  and  references  to  it,  we 
learn  that  the  Israelites  went  down  into  the 
midst  of  the  Eed  Sea ;  and  the  water  divided, 
opening  a  passage  for  them,  and  forming  a 
wall  on  each  side,  so  that  they  passed  over  on 
dry  ground.  We  also  learn  that  the  cloud 
hid  the  Israelites  from  their  enemies ;  that  it 
was  bright  and  shining  toward  the  former, 
while  it  was  dark  toward  the  latter.  Now, 
upon  the  supposition  that  there  is  here  a  refer- 
ence to  the  ceremony  of  baptism,  or  the  act  of 
baptism,  it  certainly  could  not  be  by  dipping. 
They  may  have  been  sprinkled  from  the  spray 
of  the  sea,  which  the  wind  scattered  upon 
them,  and  also  by  the  cloud  which  was  over 
their  heads. 

Attempts  have  been  made  to  strain  this 
passage  so  as  to  make  it  seem  something  like 
immersion.  But  how  could  the  Israelites  be 
dipped,  if  they  were  marching  upon  dry 
ground,  the  sea  forming  a  wall   upon   each 


THE    BIBLE   ON    BAPTISM.  67 

side,  and  the  cloud  flying  above  their  heads  ? 
It  is  plain  that  they  were  not  baptized  by 
immersion. 

If  there  is  any  allusion  to  the  mode  here, 
the  Scriptures  tell  us  how  these  Israelites  were 
baptized.  Psalm  lxxvii.  16-20.  "  The  waters 
saw  thee,  0  God,  the  waters  saw  thee;  they 
were  afraid ;  the  depths  were  troubled.  The 
clouds  poured  out  water ;  the  skies  sent  out  a 
sound;  thine  arrows  also  went  abroad."  Here 
was  thunder,  and  lightning,  and  rain. 

In  point  of  fact,  however,  we  think  that 
there  is  here  no  reference  to  the  mode  of  bap- 
tism, but  to  the  fact  that  they  were  thus  initiated 
into  a  profession  of  that  religion  which  Moses 
was  to  teach  them,  and  of  which  he  was  the 
representative. 

As  to  Noah,  there  need  be  little  said.  If 
he  could  be  baptized  by  any  thing  like  dip- 
ping, when  he  was  fast  shut  up  in  the  ark, 
when  it  rained  forty  days  and  forty  nights 
upon  the  earth,  so  might  any  of  us  be  dipped, 
with  as  much  propriety,  when  we  are  sitting 
in  our  houses,  while  the  rain  is  sprinkling 
upon  the  roof.  It  does  indeed  look  exactly 
like  sprinkling  and  pouring;  but  not  the 
least  like  dipping. 


68  THE    BIBLE    ON    BAPTISM. 

We  think  one  occasion  of  the  great  differ- 
ence of  opinion  upon  this  point  is,  that  our 
brethren  have  totally  mistaken  the  meaning 
and  design  of  water-baptism.  They  have 
somehow  imbibed  a  notion  that  there  is  great - 
importance  in  the  supposed  burial  of  Christ, 
and  so  have  thought  themselves  under  obliga- 
tion to  celebrate  and  imitate  that,  by  some 
solemn  rite;  as  if  his  burial  were  of  more 
importance  than  his  birth,  or  his  death,  or  his 
crucifixion.  Now,  a  careful  perusal  of  the 
scriptures  we  have  quoted  will  show  that  the 
burial  of  Christ  (as  it  is  called)  is  of  small 
importance  in  the  Christian  scheme.  It  is 
his  death,  and  not  the  burial,  which  is  the 
most  important  fact  in  the  whole  economy; 
and  that  is  fitly  represented  by  the  Lord's 
Supper. 

And  water-baptism  has  its  designs  and 
uses  also;  and  very  important  ones,  too.  1. 
"Water  is  designed  to  represent  either  the 
gospel,  or  the  cleansing  and  purifying  effect 
of  the  Holy  Spirit.  2.  Much  water  uniformly 
represents  the  gospel,  or  the  holy  effects  of  it. 
(See  Ezekiel's  vision  of  the  river  that  pro- 
ceeded out  from  the  throne  of  God.  Ezekiel 
xlvii.)     Hence  the  spread  and  success  of  the 


THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM.  69 

gospel  is  represented  by  a  flowing  stream. 
(See  Isaiah  lxvi.)  A  small  quantity  of  water 
represents  the  effect  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Hence 
the  continued  using  of  the  words  pour,  sprinkle, 
&c.  &c. 

The  fallen  children  of  men  need  two  things 
to  prepare  them  for  heaven.  The  one  is  the 
forgiveness  of  sin,  the  other  the  sanctification 
of  the  heart  by  the  Holy  Ghost. 

Two  sacraments  have  been  in  the  church  to 
represent  those  two  important  things.  Before 
the  coming  of  Christ,  circumcision  and  the 
passover,  both  attended  with  the  sprinkling 
and  pouring  of  blood,  because  they  were  typi- 
cal of  a  coming  Saviour.  Since  the  coming 
of  Christ,  they  are  baptism,  and  the  Lord's 
Supper.  Of  the  Lord's  Supper  it  is  said 
expressly,  "Ye  do  show  forth  the  Lord's 
death,"  and,  "This  is  the  blood  of  the  New 
Testament  for  the  remission  of  sin." 

Blood  is  omitted  in  both  cases  now,  because 
we  look  back  to  a  Saviour  already  come. 
That  baptism  means  the  outpouring  of  the 
Spirit,  the  apostle  taught  on  the  day  of  Pente- 
cost: "This  is  that  which  is  spoken  by  the 
prophet  Joel."     Acts  ii.  16-18. 

After  a  careful  examination  of  every  part 


70  THE   BIBLE   ON   BAPTISM. 

of  the  Scripture  which  had  any  bearing  upon 
this  subject,  we  have  never  been  able  to  find 
any  precept,  warrant,  or  practice  of  Christ  or 
his  apostles  which  calls  for  immersion.  Nor 
do  any  of  the  facts,  or  doctrines,  or  sacra-' 
merits  of  the  gospel  teach  any  such  practice. 

Believing  the  doctrine  that  baptism  must  be 
by  immersion  to  arise  from  a  forgetfulness  of 
the  meaning  of  the  ordinance,  and  believing 
it  to  be  wholly  unscriptural,  we  think  it  will 
not  prevail;  but,  as  the  light  increases,  and 
the  Scriptures  come  to  be  better  understood, 
and  the  real  design  of  these  sacraments,  the 
mistake  will  be  seen  and  abandoned. 

In  conclusion,  we  would  say  to  the  reader, 
do  not  allow  the  observations  contained  in  this 
pamphlet  to  form  your  opinions  on  a  subject 
of  so  sacred  a  nature.  Peruse  the  passages 
of  Scripture  again,  omitting  all  the  rest,  and 
then  form  your  sentiments,  and  govern  your 
practice,  by  the  pure  unerring  word,  and  that 
alone. 

THE  END. 


